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Chinese Vice-Premier Meets Qatari Special Envoy
Vice-Premier Qian Qichen met Monday, December 4, with Qatari Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabir al-Thani, who is visiting China as special envoy of the Qatari Emir.
Hamad conveyed to Qian a message from Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa al-Thani for Chinese President Jiang Zemin and briefed Qian on the ninth summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), which ended mid November in Doha, capital of Qatar.
The summit, described as "successful" by Hamad, focused on the Iraq issue and the Middle East peace process, and gave authorization for Qatar to continue mediating between Iraq and Kuwait.
"It's the first time that Iraq and Kuwait have been willing to accept intermediation. This is an important and positive sign," Hamad said.
During the summit, the OIC also discussed the Palestinian issue and condemned Israel for the slaughtering of the Palestinian people, he said.
The Qatari Emir took over the rotating OIC presidency for a three-year term at the summit, he said, adding that Qatar will make more efforts to enhance the OIC's role in international and regional affairs.
China, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, has an important role in international affairs, and Qatar and the Islamic world are willing to hear China's opinions on the Middle East and the Iraq issues, Hamad said. They will continue to keep China informed of the developments of related issues and further coordinate with China on the stand they take in this regard.
Qian said the OIC, an important organization for developing countries, has a unique role in international and regional affairs.
He said the constant bloody clashes between Israel and Palestine in the last two months have caused heavy casualties to both sides, especially the Palestinians, hindered the Middle East peace process and resulted in turbulence in the entire region.
The Chinese government is deeply concerned about the situation, Qian said, adding that China voted for UN resolution 1322, which condemns Israel's excessive use of force against the Palestinians.
He said China is aware of a series of documents adopted at the ninth OIC summit, which call on Israel and Palestine to solve the conflicts through consultations.
"This is in conformity with China's stand," Qian added.
Qian said China calls on Iraq to implement relevant UN resolutions in a "comprehensive and practical manner." Meanwhile, China maintains that Iraq's sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence shall be respected, he said.
"Any acts violating international law and the UN resolution must be abandoned," he stressed.
China has made tremendous efforts inside and outside the UN Security Council to accelerate the lifting of sanctions imposed on Iraq, Qian said.
He said China believes it is necessary to start consultations on the Iraq issue. Meanwhile, Iraq for its part should take an active stance and cooperate with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in his mediation.
Qian noted it is crucial for relevant countries to drop their past enmities, establish mutual-trust and stay in harmony.
He praised Qatar for its positive and unique role in finding an early solution to the Iraq issue, saying that China is willing to make joint efforts with the international community to promote regional peace and development.
Describing Sino-Qatari relations as "satisfactory," Qian stressed that China attaches great importance to the friendly cooperation with Qatar. "The two countries are highly complementary in economy, and we see massive potential for further cooperation," he said.
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