SHOWING the strategic importance China attaches to China-Arab relations, President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory message to Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid, the current chairperson of the Council of Heads of the League of Arab States, on Saturday, extending his congratulations on the convening of the 34th Arab League Summit in Baghdad that day.

Xi said that the vigorous development of relations between China and Arab states in recent years has set an example of unity and cooperation among developing countries, with Arab countries’ adherence to independence and autonomy, promotion of development and rejuvenation, and safeguarding of fairness and justice playing an increasingly important and active role in advancing the influence of the Global South.

The three pivotal initiatives President Xi has put forward — the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilisation Initiative — address the pressing issues of the times. They are not only a call to action to address the global governance deficit, trust deficit, development deficit and peace deficit, but offer viable pathways and robust support for the building of a global community with a shared future.

Putting these into practice, China and the Arab countries have reached a broad consensus on advancing cooperation across the board, pursuing high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and promoting inter-civilisation dialogue. This will help translate the vision for China-Arab relations into tangible benefits for the two sides.

As Xi said in his message, China is willing to work with Arab states to deepen mutual political trust, push forward mutually beneficial cooperation, increase people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and join hands on the path toward modernisation.

China and the Arab countries should further synergise their development strategies to make their cooperation in areas such as trade and investment, energy, science and technology a fine example of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. They should also explore new areas for cooperation such as artificial intelligence, investment, finance and new energy, so that they can embark together on an innovative and green path to prosperity.

In the process, the two sides should work together to make their relations a paradigm of harmonious coexistence between civilisations by promoting people-to-people exchanges.

In their gathering in the Iraqi capital, the Arab leaders called for an immediate end to Israel’s attacks on the Gaza Strip and for humanitarian aid to be allowed into the Palestinian enclave without conditions.

China is willing to further stre­ngthen its coordination with the Arab countries to help create the conditions for the resolution of the crisis.

China firmly supports the establishment of an independent State of Palestine that enjoys full sovereignty based on the 1967 borders and with East Jerusalem as its capital, and it supports Palestine’s full membership in the United Nations. China has stressed that the Palestinian-Israeli conflict should not continue indefinitely, and justice should not be absent forever. The Arab countries are well aware that China upholds justice and peace on the Palestinian issue, and that China has no self-calculations in its Middle East policy, a region some major countries regard as a focus of their geopolitical game.

Looking ahead, China will remain a trustworthy friend and partner of the Arab states. Through consultation and understanding and joint efforts to strengthen their cooperation for mutual benefit, China and the Arab countries can send a strong statement of their common desire for a more harmonious world.

Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2025