Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi welcomed on Tuesday, July 23, the agreement reached by fourteen Palestinian movements which provides for the formation of a “interim government of national reconciliation” in the Gaza Strip after the war.
“The most significant development is the agreement to form an interim government of national reconciliation for the post-war governance of Gaza.”Wang said, after the signing in Beijing of a joint declaration by the various Palestinian organizations, including Hamas and Fatah, meeting this week in the Chinese capital for a new attempt at reconciliation.
China wants to play “a constructive role”
“Reconciliation is an internal issue for the Palestinian movements, but it cannot be achieved without the support of the international community”the head of Chinese diplomacy further declared. China, he added, wishes “play a constructive role in maintaining peace and stability in the Middle East”.
Fatah, founded by historic Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, and Hamas had been irreconcilable since the Islamist movement’s coup that ousted the Palestinian Authority from the Gaza Strip in June 2007, after more than a year of political crisis and violence following the last legislative elections, but Israel’s war in the enclave has revived discussions.
Chinese diplomacy had judged the exchanges encouraging and expressed the hope of a ” inter-Palestinian reconciliation »Beijing has in recent years strengthened its trade and diplomatic relations with the Middle East, much of which has traditionally been under American influence.