World News | Palestinian President Abbas starts China visit, Beijing seeks to play a bigger role in the Middle East

BEIJING, June 13 (AP) — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas began a visit to China on Tuesday, as Beijing seeks a greater role in Middle Eastern politics and competes for energy resources.

Announcing the visit, China’s foreign ministry said China was willing to help mediate relations between the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli government, which had deteriorated to their lowest level in recent years. The ministry did not say who Abbas would meet in Beijing or provide other details of his four-day visit.

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Fighting between Israel and Palestinians in the West Bank intensified last year, leading to the deadliest violence in years on both sides in the territory.

The visit also comes after China hosted talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia that led to the restoration of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

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The development was seen as a diplomatic victory for China, as Gulf Arab states see the United States slowly withdrawing from the wider region.

But it remains to be seen how far the reconciliation efforts between Iran and Saudi Arabia will go. The rivalry dates back to the 1979 revolution that toppled Iran’s Western-backed monarchy, and the two countries have backed rival armed groups and political factions in the region in recent years.

CCTV quoted Foreign Minister Qin Gang as saying, “China supports Palestine and Israel to resume peace talks as soon as possible on the basis of the two-state solution” and is willing to play an active role in this regard. ” (Associated Press)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the body of content may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)