CIIS Hosts the Second Middle East Security Forum

On September 21, the second Middle East Security

Forum, themed “Building a New Security Architecture in the

Middle East, Achieving Common Security in the Region,” was held by China Institute of International Studies (CIIS) in

Beijing in an online-plus-offline format. State Councilor and

Foreign Minister Wang Yi addressed the opening ceremony via video link. Vice Foreign Minister Deng Li attended the opening and gave a keynote speech, while former Palestinian

Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and former Jordanian Prime Minister Adnan Badran delivered remarks virtually. More than 70 people, including diplomats, security officials and scholars from Middle East and related extra-regional countries, representatives from the Chinese Foreign Ministry and Defense Ministry, and former Chinese ambassadors and think tank experts, participated in the event.

In his speech, State Councilor Wang Yi reflected upon the encouraging progress made since the first Middle East Security Forum was held in 2019. Under the new circumstances, it is both the common aspiration of Middle East countries and the due responsibility of the international community to adopt systematic and forward-looking thinking based on the actual situation in the Middle East and changes in the international environment, so as to jointly resolve the security challenges and join hands to promote long-term stability in the Middle East. He put forward four proposals in this regard: upholding the new vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security; clarifying the dominant position of Middle East countries; abiding by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter; and strengthening dialogue on regional security.

Two sub-forums, on the Palestinian question and the security situation in the Gulf region respectively, were held during the event. The participants conducted effective communication on relevant issues and spoke highly of China’s long-time contributions to Middle East peace and security. In particular, they look forward to the implementation of the Global Security Initiative proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping, which will facilitate the building of a common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security architecture in the region.