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China Calls for Israeli Restraint over Mideast Violence
China called upon Israel to exercise restraint to prevent the further escalation of the current confrontation in the Middle East, saying that "the excessive use of force" will make the prospects for the resumption of the Middle East peace process even more remote.
The statement came as Wang Yingfan, the Chinese permanent representative to the United Nations, took the floor at an urgent Security Council meeting on the Middle East issue.
"The past two days have seen a drastic escalation and spreading of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict," he said. "We have seen a large increase of casualties on both sides, including many innocent children."
"The casualties on the Palestinian side is more serious," he said. "The Palestinian economy has been seriously affected, and the sufferings of the civilians have been further deepened."
"The Chinese side is against violence of any form," he said. "We always call on both sides to exercise restraint and take all necessary measures to prevent the situation from further deteriorating."
"Under the current circumstances, we urge the Israeli side in particular to exercise restraint," he said. "The excessive use of force can only lead to a vicious cycle of uncontrollable violence and conflicts, thus making the prospects for the resumption of Middle East peace process even more remote."
"Now the entire Middle East situation has entered a very dangerous moment," Wang said. "We are convinced that peace remains the option for all sides, and it remains the only option."
The Chinese ambassador noted that UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, as mandated by the Security Council, is conducting mediations and consultations among parties concerned.
"China supports the efforts by the secretary-general," he said. "We call on all parties concerned, especially the Israeli side, to actively cooperate with the secretary-general, and also support the early start of the work by the International Fact-finding Committee."
Wang also called on Israel to "give serious consideration to the proposal of the deployment of international observers in the conflict area, so as to create favorable conditions for alleviating the situation and resuming the peace talks."
The Security Council began the urgent meeting Wednesday afternoon to discuss the escalating violence in the Palestinian territories.
A seven-week-long confrontation between Israelis and Palestinians has killed nearly 300 people, mostly Palestinians, reports said.
China Voices Concern over Violence in Middle East
China is deeply concerned over the prolonged violent conflict between the Israeli and Palestinian sides, and calls for an end to the conflict, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Sun Yuxi said November 21.
Sun said in a regular press conference here that the prolonged violence has caused great losses to people of both sides, particularly the Palestinian side.
President Concerned over Mideast Violence
Chinese President Jiang Zemin October 12 expressed deep concern over the ongoing clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians, urging the two sides to act immediately to prevent the situation from further escalating.
In separate messages sent to Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, Jiang said that as the Palestinian-Israeli peace talks are in a critical stage, China urges all related parties to take measures immediately to prevent the situation from deteriorating, and stop all words and deeds not conducive to the talks.
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