BEIJING: In the eyes of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, China’s adherence to peace, amity and solidarity is deeply rooted in the nation’s culture of thousands of years.
“In my own career, I have learned a lot from the teachings of ancient Chinese philosophers. One of my strong guiding principles is: ‘A thousand friends are never enough; and even only one enemy is still too much’,” Prabowo said at a reception during his state visit to China last month, drawing huge applause from the audience.
During his talks with President Xi Jinping on Nov 9, he thanked China for upholding fairness and justice on the Palestinian question, and said Indonesia supports the three major global initiatives proposed by Xi — the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative.
Leaders, officials and scholars have agreed, when assessing Beijing’s major country diplomacy with Chinese characteristics, that China is a sincere, productive provider of peaceful solutions to hot spot issues and in global governance.
China has strived tirelessly for breakthroughs, using a range of innovative approaches, and is a keen supporter of true multilateralism, working consistently to make the voice of developing countries better heard regarding global justice, peace and development, analysts said.
Among the clear evidence in this regard is Beijing’s role in successfully mediating and facilitating the landmark reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran last year.
“China, we have seen, is constantly pursuing different avenues to promote peace, to create dialogue among nations, to try to reduce tensions and sit everybody around the table. We saw this especially in the situation with the Middle East right now,” said Nicaraguan Ambassador to China Michael Campbell.
“We are committed to working hand in hand with China as we seek to create more democratic international relations for the world,” Campbell told China Daily.
He noted that in many situations, China advances cooperation among countries “to find solutions, and to focus on the real priorities of the world, addressing issues such as climate change, helping to eradicate poverty, and promoting development and prosperity for everyone”.
Building on the momentum of its facilitation of the reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran, China “has promoted de-escalation efforts and long-term peace” in the Middle East, according to an article published by British and Portuguese scholars in October at the website of the Georgetown (University) Journal of International Affairs.
Maria Papageorgiou, a China expert and researcher at Newcastle University in the United Kingdom, and Mohammad Eslami, an invited assistant professor at the University of Minho in Portugal, said that “China’s most substantial engagement “in resolving the Palestine-Israel conflict came with the Beijing Declaration issued in July at the gathering of representatives of Fatah, Hamas and other Palestinian factions. –The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
