No mention of Red Sea attacks in US-China talks, but progress ‘likely’
Official statements after Wang Yi and Jake Sullivan meet in Bangkok make no mention of attacks in key maritime corridor, with one analyst calling the issue ‘too important to avoid’ but ‘too sensitive to mention’.
“Essentially, the Chinese side believes this is not an issue created by Iran, so putting pressure on Iran would not solve the fundamental problem here,”
- The Yemen-based rebel group backed by Iran has launched drone and missile attacks on cargo ships in the key maritime corridor since November, in what it says is a response to Israel’s military operation in Gaza.
- The Wang-Sullivan meetings came amid a spike in the conflict, as the US and its allies launched fresh attacks on Houthi targets in Yemen, and the rebel group stepped up its attacks.
- The Chinese foreign ministry also called the talks “productive”, saying both sides discussed global issues including the Middle East, again without providing details.
- Nonetheless, observers said some progress was likely to have been made, though Washington could still be doubtful of Beijing’s willingness to be caught up in conflict in a region where some of its key interests lie.
US strikes militia sites in Iraq, Houthi anti-ship missiles in Yemen24 Jan 2024
- Analysts have attributed Beijing’s reticence to a reluctance to get involved in a deepening Middle East conflict, especially since Chinese ships had not been targeted.
- Wang, however, has previously warned against adding “fuel to the fire”, in a veiled reference to attacks on Houthi targets by a US-led coalition.
China, he said, would not want to undermine Iran’s interests or cause Iran to “lose face”.
“But if only to protect its own commercial interests and promote another Biden-Xi dialogue, China likely is willing to ask Iran to temper the Red Sea mayhem being caused by the Houthis.”
- Reuters on Friday reported that China had pressed Iran to rein in the Houthis “or risk harming business relations with Beijing”, citing four Iranian sources and a diplomat familiar with the matter.
- The US and China have sought to get ties on an even keel following the closely watched November 15 meeting in San Francisco between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his American counterpart Joe Biden, which was hailed as a “new starting point” by Wang.
The White House readout on the Bangkok talks said the two sides were committed to pursuing “additional high-level diplomacy … including through a call between President Biden and President Xi”.
US seeks just-tough-enough response to deadly Middle East attack30 Jan 2024
Still, Arase said the US would be skeptical about how much China would do to pressure Iran .
“China does not want to tread on Iran’s core interests or anger ‘the street’ in the Middle East seemingly only to please the US,” he said. “Nor does China want to lose face by having its demands rejected and denounced by those whom it is courting.”
Like Arase, Zhu also said that, despite its keenness to mend ties with the US, China might not want to jeopardie its other interests in the region, including relations with Iran and the Arab states.
___________________________________________________________________________________
No comments:
Post a Comment