(Beijing) China is a “force for peace” in the world, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Thursday, who also denounced American “pressure” and expressed support for the Palestinians.
“In the face of an unstable and complex international environment, China will resolutely be a force for world peace, stability and progress,” Wang told a news conference in Beijing.
He was speaking on the sidelines of the annual session of the Chinese Parliament, the main political event of the year in China, which is traditionally an opportunity for the government to present the broad outlines of its economic and diplomatic policy.
Wang Yi’s press conference comes at a time when China’s growing political influence around the world is causing widespread concern among Westerners and some of its Asian neighbors.
The leaders of Southeast Asian countries (Asean) and Australia warned on Wednesday against actions that “threaten peace” in the South China Sea, after new incidents between China and the Philippines in these disputed waters.
Chinese coast guard boats were accused Tuesday by the Philippines of harassing a flotilla of Philippine ships on a resupply mission near a disputed reef. Beijing accused Manila of deliberately trying to provoke an incident.
“We will defend our legitimate rights” in the area, Wang Yi stressed on Thursday.
China claims almost all of the islands in the South China Sea. But other neighboring countries such as Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei have competing claims and control several islets.
Support for Palestinians
“We resolutely oppose all hegemony and intimidation and forcefully defend the sovereignty, security and development interests of the country,” Wang Yi also underlined, in a clear reference to Washington.
The United States “blames” China “under any pretext,” said the head of Chinese diplomacy. Bilateral tensions remain high on several issues: Taiwan, trade, new technologies, the struggle for influence in the Asia-Pacific and even human rights.
“The means of pressure on China are constantly renewed and the list of unilateral sanctions constantly lengthened,” lamented Wang Yi.
The head of Chinese diplomacy also warned that Taiwanese political leaders seeking independence for the island, claimed by China and supported by the United States, will be “liquidated by history”.
Wang Yi also reaffirmed China’s support for the Palestinian cause.
“We are in favor of Palestine becoming a full member of the United Nations,” he declared at a time when the conflict between Israel and Hamas still rages in the Gaza Strip.
“The long-standing desire of the Palestinian people to create an independent country can no longer be evaded,” he added.
” New model ”
Chinese diplomacy regularly states that it wants to make its contribution to the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, which has been at a standstill since 2014.
China maintains good relations with Israel. But she has supported the Palestinian cause for several decades and traditionally advocates for a two-state solution.
Wang Yi also defended his country’s good relations with Russia on Thursday, while China is criticized by the West on the Ukrainian issue.
If Beijing calls for respect for the territorial integrity of all countries – including Ukraine – it has never publicly condemned Moscow.
“China and Russia have created a new model for major-power relations, which is completely different from the old Cold War era,” Wang Yi said.
Beijing seeks to position itself as a neutral party in the war, but its strategic partnership with Moscow has strengthened since the start of the conflict.
“On the basis of non-alignment, non-confrontation and non-targeting of third countries, we continue on the path of permanent good-neighborly friendship and deepening our overall strategic cooperation” with Moscow, Wang Yi pointed out.
China regularly calls for a political settlement to the conflict. His envoy for the Ukrainian question, the diplomat Li Hui, was in Moscow and Brussels in recent days for talks with Russian and European officials.