‘Let’s meet, let’s talk — we all benefit’
The Belt and Road Initiative will be a new highlight of China-Arab cooperation, giving new meaning to the historic connection between the two sides, said Fariz Mehdawi, Palestinian ambassador to China.
“I’m sure there is a lot of talk about what we are going to do within this framework with Arab countries as a region,” he said, noting that the nature of this initiative is global.
“Let’s meet, let’s talk — we all benefit from that. That’s the Chinese approach,” he said.
The ambassador expressed high expectations for the upcoming ministerial meeting of China-Arab States Coopera“We tion Forum.
“We will be happy to hear from our Chinese side, especially that the meeting will be addressed by President Xi Jinping,” he said. “Wherever we can work together as an Arab group, we will,” he said, adding that there is huge potential to increase all kinds of cooperation between China and Arab states.
The ambassador expressed support for China’s efforts to safeguard multilateralism while some countries adopt a policy of unilateralism and protectionism.
need to have collective and multilateral approach to solve global issues. One cannot solve them alone, definitely, no matter how powerful one is,” he said.
Mehdawi said hot-spot issues in the region will also be discussed at the meeting as “the political situation is essential before we can talk about economic or cultural cooperation”.
Given the current situation in Middle East, Mehdawi said, Arab countries are counting on China to play a more active role in the region.
“I’m happy to see that Chinese diplomacy is more active, and it is also much welcomed by Arab states,” he said.