BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping called for a return to “unity and harmony” on Thursday as he welcomed gas-rich Qatar’s emir to Beijing, amid a dispute that has seen some Arab states led by Saudi Arabia severing relations with Doha.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cut diplomatic, trade and transport ties with Qatar in June 2017. They accuse Qatar of supporting terrorism and cultivating ties with Saudi Arabia’s regional foe, Iran. Qatar, which denies the charge, says the boycott seeks to curtail its sovereignty.

China has largely stayed out of the dispute, calling for the problem to be resolved via talks, though has played host to senior Qatari officials since the spat began.

Meeting in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, Xi told Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani that regional cooperation was an important basis for prosperity in the Gulf region, Chinese state television reported.

China supports the efforts of the Gulf Cooperation Council to seek an “appropriate resolution to disputes and contradictions via political and diplomatic means, to return unity and harmony between Gulf and Arab countries”, Xi said.

“China is willing to continue to play a constructive role according to the wishes of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries,” Xi added, according to the report, which did not make direct mention of the Gulf rift.

In remarks in front of reporters, Xi called Al Thani “an old friend and a good friend”.

Al Thani told Xi that he was very happy with their personal friendship. “We are ready to have bigger investments in China, in infrastructure or in any other field we see as important for us,” he said.

“We are happy to provide China with liquid gas and we are ready to provide China with more in the near future. I am very happy to be in China.” Last October, state energy giant Qatar Petroleum said it had signed a five-year agreement to supply China with 600,000 tonnes of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) per year.

Qatar’s state news agency said Al Thani and Xi had signed memorandums of understanding on diplomatic training, future trade delegations, and the creation of a road map for Qatar to take part in China’s Belt and Road initiative.

China has traditionally played little role in Middle East conflicts or diplomacy, despite its reliance on the region for oil, but it has been trying to raise its profile, especially in the Arab world. Saudi Arabia’s King Salman visited Beijing in 2017. However, China has had to walk a fine line, as it also has close ties with both Iran and Israel.

Published in Dawn, February 1st, 2019