Chinese Foreign Minister Holds Phone Talks With Palestine and Israel, Pushing for Peace Negotiations

On October 23, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held separate phone conversations with his Palestinian and Israelian counterparts. In both talks, Wang stressed China’s condemnations against all acts that harm civilians and actions that violate international law, calling for an immediate ceasefire. He firmly reiterated to both sides that the two-state solution remains the only resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, advocating for “a more authoritative, wide-ranging and effective international peace conference”.

In his talk with the Palestinian Foreign Minister, Wang Yi vowed to continue providing humanitarian aid to Palestine, tailored to the needs of the people in Gaza. During the exchange with his Israeli counterpart, Wang acknowledged that “all countries have the right to self-defense”, but emphasized that such actions “should abide by international humanitarian law and protect the safety of civilians”. Wang’s statement aligns with his previous condemnation of Israel’s military operation as “beyond the scope of self-defense”, referring to numerous attacks on Palestinian civilian targets.

This diplomatic effort marks the first direct mediation by China since the escalation of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict earlier this month. A week prior, Wang Yi held phone talks with the US, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Turkey, all of which have significant geopolitical interests in the region. Throughout these discussions, Wang repeatedly emphasized that “China has no self-interests in the Palestinian issue”. Following the prelude to assure relevant parties, the conversations with Palestine and Israel demonstrate China’s proactively step toward mitigating the situation from a humanitarian standpoint.

Shanghai to Establish Pilot Area for “Digital Silk Road” E-Commerce Cooperation

On Octorber 23rd, The Chinese State Council announced the building of a pilot area for “Digital Silk Road” E-commerce Cooperation in Shanghai.

According to customs statistics, China’s cross-border e-commerce import and export volume reached 21.1 trillion yuan in 2022, up 9.8 percent year-on-year. At present, China has established bilateral e-commerce cooperation mechanisms with 29 countries across five continents. The “Digital Silk Road” has become a new channel and highlight for economic and trade cooperation.

Shanghai is the world’s largest port city for trade, the largest distribution center for imported consumer goods in China, and the preferred gateway for international brands to enter the Chinese market. It leads the country in e-commerce transaction scale and is home to a number of leading domestic and international e-commerce companies.

Chinese netizens argue that the construction of the pilot area will strongly promote e-commerce exchanges between Shanghai and countries jointly building the Belt and Road Initiative and help connect more overseas high-quality products to the Chinese consumer market.