On December 7, 2022, Guo Wei, Head of the Office of the People’s Republic of China to the State of Palestine, published a signed article “Working Together to Build a China-Arab Community with a Shared Future” at the Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, interpreting the “Report on China-Arab Cooperation in the New Era”, and explaining that China and Arab countries inherit historical friendship, deepen strategic cooperation, and work together to build a China-Arab community with a shared future for the new era. The full text is as follows:

The relations between China and Arab states are time-honored. Our exchanges in the long history set an example for the friendly exchanges between different nations.  Over the past 73 years since the founding of the New China, China and Arab states have respected each other, treated each other as equals, engaged in mutually-beneficial cooperation and learned from each other. Our friendly cooperation has achieved historic leaps forward both in width and depth. In early December 2022, the Foreign Ministry issued the report on China-Arab cooperation in the new era, in which we looked back at the history of friendly exchanges between the two sides, reviewed such practices after the founding of the New China, especially in the new stage in the 21st century, and laid out the prospects and the way forward for building a community with a shared future between China and Arab states.

Peaceful cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning and mutual benefit have always been the theme of China-Arab historical exchanges. The Land Silk Road and the maritime spice road have become the two main arteries connecting the eastern and western civilizations. In the 1950s, Arab countries became independent one after another. In 1955, the Bandung Conference opened the door to the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Arab states. Premier Zhou Enlai led a Chinese delegation in extensive contact with Arab representatives attending the Bandung Conference, supported Egypt’s struggle to regain sovereignty over the Suez Canal, supported the inclusion of the Palestinian issue on the agenda, called for the settlement of the Arab refugee problem in Palestine, and supported the people of North Africa in their struggle for independence. 

In 2012, the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China was held, marking the beginning of a new era in the development of socialism with Chinese characteristics. The Arab states have also entered the stage of exploring the path of independent development and realizing national stability, development and transformation. Both China and Arab countries advocate respect for sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence, oppose external interference and all forms of hegemonism and power politics, respect and support countries to independently choose their development path according to their national conditions and national strength, firmly safeguard the international system with the United Nations at its core, the international order based on international law, and the basic norms of international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. 

Entering the third decade of the 21st century, the once-in-a-century transformation, the pandemic of the century and the Ukrainian crisis are intertwined, and the world has entered a new period of turbulence and change. China and Arab countries are more determined to develop friendly relations, and their actions to support each other in safeguarding core interests are more powerful. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, China and Arab countries have cooperated efficiently in vaccine research and use, joint prevention and control, experience sharing, medical drugs, etc. By October 2022, China has provided more than 340 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines. China firmly supports the strategic autonomy, unity and self-improvement of Arab countries. The Arab countries firmly support China in safeguarding its sovereignty and territorial integrity on issues involving Xinjiang and Taiwan. China and Arab countries jointly build the “Belt and Road” in high quality to promote the implementation of the Global Development Initiative. As of October 2022, 12 Arab countries have joined the “Group of Friends of the Global Development Initiative”. 

The Palestinian question, as a root problem in the Middle East, bears on regional peace, international justice and human conscience. China firmly supports the just cause of the Palestinian people to restore their legitimate national rights, supports the establishment of a fully sovereign and independent State of Palestine based on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, and supports Palestine to become a full member of the United Nations and actively provide humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people. China supports the efforts made by the League of Arab States and its member states on the Palestinian issue, calls on the international community to strengthen its sense of urgency and place the Palestinian issue at the top of the international agenda, urges all parties concerned to adhere to international law, relevant UN resolutions, the Arab Peace Initiative, the principle of “land for peace” and other consensus, promote Palestinian-Israeli peace talks on the basis of the “two-state solution”, and promote an early, just and lasting settlement of the Palestinian issue. 

President Xi Jinping attached great importance to the Palestinian issue and has sent a congratulatory message to the UN commemorative meeting to mark the “International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People” for ten consecutive years. In May 2013 and July 2017, President Xi Jinping held two talks with Palestinian President Abbas and put forward four propositions on promoting the settlement of the Palestinian questions for two times. The core idea is to firmly promote a political settlement based on the “two-state solution”, uphold the common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security concept, strengthen the joint efforts of the international community to promote peace and promote peace through development. 

In April 2022, President Xi Jinping proposed the Global Security Initiative to guide China’s efforts to promote peace through talks in the Middle East. In March 2021, China proposed a five-point proposal on achieving security and stability in the Middle East, including advocating mutual respect, upholding equity and justice, achieving nuclear non-proliferation, jointly fostering collective security and accelerating development cooperation. In July 2021, China proposed three-point vision for implementing the “two-state solution” on the Palestinian issue, advocated the strengthening of the authority of the Palestinian National Authority and the enhancement of unity among all parties in Palestine, and called on Palestine and Israel to resume peace talks on the basis of the “two-state solution”. After the outbreak of fierce conflict between Palestine and Israel in May 2021, China, as the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council, promoted the UN Security Council to have five deliberations on the Palestinian issue and facilitated the UN Security Council to issue a presidential press statement. China has held four seminars for Palestinian and Israeli peacemakers, calling for a larger, more authoritative, and more influential international peace conference to effectively promote the settlement of the Palestinian issue.

In 2022, the Communist Party of China(CPC) successfully held its 20th National Congress, and it was proposed that the central task of the Communist Party of China will be to bring together the Chinese people of all ethnic groups in a concerted effort to realize the Second Centenary Goal of building China into a great modern socialist country in all respects and to advance the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts through a Chinese path to modernization. On the new journey, China has always been committed to its foreign policy goals of upholding world peace and promoting common development, and it is dedicated to promoting a human community with a shared future; China will remain firm in pursuing an independent foreign policy of peace, adhere to the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence in pursuing friendship and cooperation with other countries, be committed to its fundamental national policy of opening to the outside world, play an active part in the reform and development of the global governance system, carry forward the common values of all mankind and provide new opportunities for all countries in the world including Arab countries with China’s new development. China is willing to work with Arab countries to carry forward China-Arab traditional friendship, enrich and deepen all-round, multi-layer and wide-ranging cooperation, and work together to build a China-Arab community with a shared future in the new era, so as to benefit the people of both sides, promote solidarity and cooperation among developing countries, and jointly safeguard international peace and development.