PRC/MEPP: PRC SUPPORTS ANNAPOLIS CONFERENCE, BUT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 007213

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/23/2027
TAGS: PREL ETRD ENRG PTER MEPP CH IS
SUBJECT: PRC/MEPP: PRC SUPPORTS ANNAPOLIS CONFERENCE, BUT
SEEKS MIDEAST ROLE TO ENHANCE NATIONAL INTERESTS

Classified By: Classified by Minister-Counselor for Political Affairs
Aubrey Carlson. Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: China's decision to send Foreign Minister
Yang Jiechi to the November 26-27 Annapolis conference on the
Middle East Peace Process (MEPP) demonstrates China's firm
support for the international meeting, according to an MFA
contact. Chinese public statements have played up the
international nature of the meeting and, in particular, the
importance of participation of Arab League countries,
although our contact expressed some concern about the
attendance of major Arab powers, and other contacts suggested
that PRC expectations for the meeting are low. A prominent
Middle East scholar told us that China views the MEPP as a
vehicle for protecting traditional core interests, including
ensuring strong economic links with the oil-exporting region
and undermining the political support Chinese Muslims draw
from the Middle East. END SUMMARY.

PRC "Supports" Annapolis Conference
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2. (C) Drawing from talking points previously used by MFA
spokesperson Liu Jianchao, MFA West Asian and North African
Affairs Department Director Xiao Junzheng told Poloff
November 23 that China "welcomes" the Annapolis conference as
an important opportunity to move the Middle East toward
"comprehensive, just and lasting" peace. China, he stressed,
is supportive of the effort and, like many countries, hopes
for a positive outcome. China's decision to send Foreign
Minister Yang Jiechi to participate in the meeting is further
reflective of China's interest in showing support for the
conference. He stressed the need for a reduction in tensions
between Israel and Palestine and expressed hope that the
conference would serve to underscore the necessity for
dialogue and negotiation between Israel and Palestine as the
best means for resolving the long-standing conflict.

MFA Interested in Arab League Participation
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3. (C) Xiao stressed the international nature of the
conference, suggesting that the international show of support
the meeting could generate would be an important outcome. He
noted in particular that the participation of Arab League
represents a potentially useful broadening of the peace
process. Xiao also expressed keen interest in which Arab
League countries in particular would attend, reflecting
China's interest in the MEPP as a tool for developing closer
ties with the broader Middle East region. He suggested that
Egypt and Saudi Arabia may be reluctant to confirm their
participation.

Support for MEPP Driven by Need for Stronger Arab Relations
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4. (C) Li Guofu, Director of the Center for Middle East
Studies at the MFA-affiliated China Institute for
International Studies (CIIS),told Poloff earlier that this
growing interest in the Middle East, including through the
MEPP, reflects Beijing's view that the region has direct
relevance for core issues of Chinese national interest.
China's need for strong relations with Arab countries,
particularly oil-producing ones, he noted, explains Beijing's
increasing interest in finding some constructive role to play
in the MEPP, especially as Israel's Arab neighbors display
more active diplomacy on the issue. Li added that "several
Arab countries" directly appealed to China to play a more
proactive role in the MEPP, and the appointment of Ambassador
Sun Bigan as China's Special Envoy to the MEPP can be viewed
as China's effort to respond positively to that call.

Ties to Middle East: A Means to Co-opt Domestic Opposition
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5. (C) China's need for a stronger presence in the Middle
East, in part through participation in the MEPP, can also be
traced to the need for Beijing to maintain social stability
and prevent extremism and terrorism within its own borders,
Li emphasized. Arab countries, despite the distance that
separates them from China's western provinces, remain an
important and influential source of political inspiration for
Muslim populations in the PRC, which Beijing views as a
potential threat to stability. Beijing fears the threat of

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Muslim extremism within China, Li added, and ultimately sees
dealing with this threat as critical for China's territorial
integrity. Beijing seeks stronger ties with the Middle East,
through outreach on the MEPP and other initiatives, in an
effort to undermine or co-opt this Middle East support for
Muslims in China.

Reward without the Risk
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6. (C) China's attitude toward the MEPP, however, is
fundamentally "low-risk," Li stressed, with China generally
unwilling to take any bold measures that would compromise
what Beijing sees as China's core interests. If the MEPP
should bear fruit, Li noted, China's measured participation
would bring credit to China and its growing foreign policy
ambitions, but Beijing believes China will remain blameless
should the MEPP fail. An Egyptian Embassy Political Officer
told us November 21 in any case that China has low
expectations for the conference. In his discussions, MFA
officials made clear that China does not expect any dramatic
progress at the conference, especially given the lack of
participation of Hamas and the domestic political constraints
of Israel.

China Wary of Friction with U.S. over Middle East?
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7. (C) Embassy of Israel DCM DJ Schneeweiss told Poloff
November 7 that the PRC's low-risk approach is further
reflective of China's weighing its interests in the region
with its relationship with the United States. Beijing
continues to view the Middle East, Schneeweiss said, as a
U.S. "sphere of influence," and involving itself too deeply
in the MEPP could risk putting China into conflict with the
United States. Schneeweiss noted in particular that China's
Special Envoy to the MEPP lacks the mandate to bring any real
Chinese commitment to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict.
RANDT