Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas arrived in Beijing on Tuesday for a four-day trip, his fifth official visit to the country. He is expected to meet several senior Chinese officials.
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Abbas and Chinese President Xi Jinping are scheduled to exchange "views on recent developments in the Palestinian territory as well as regional and international issues of common interest", according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.
"President Abbas is an old friend, a good friend of the Chinese people," stressed Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry. Beijing traditionally supports a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Also traveling with the Palestinian president is the PA's foreign minister, Riyad al-Maliki, who met with his counterpart on Tuesday afternoon, according to local media.
Abbas Zaki, a senior member of Abbas's Fatah party, said in an interview with the state-run China News Agency that the Chinese and Palestinians are "closer friends than brothers." He added, "I'm very happy to see that China has become more involved in Middle East affairs since the summit between China and Arab countries last year."
Defined by the United States as a rival, China has in recent years strengthened its commercial and diplomatic relations with countries in the Middle East, many of which are traditionally under American influence. Beijing oversaw and facilitated the recent rapprochement between two major regional powers, Iran and Saudi Arabia.
Xi met with Abbas when the two were in Saudi Arabia, calling on him to "work for a close, just and lasting solution to the Palestinian question."
This article was first published by i24NEWS.
