HONG KONG — As India and China seek greater influence on the global stage, the Israel-Hamas war is testing their diplomatic prowess.
The world’s two most populous countries have both strived to appear neutral in the conflict, mindful of the need to balance their relations with Israel and the Palestinians.
They also have broader concerns: China, feeling targeted by the United States and its allies, has been strengthening its ties with countries outside the West and asserting its diplomatic presence, particularly in the Middle East where it seeks stability to protect its investments.
India, meanwhile, is trying to cast itself as the leader of a united Global South that would rather not choose between the U.S. and China.
Both countries have had formal diplomatic relations with Israel since 1992, and both recognized Palestine as a state upon its declaration in 1988. They also both stress the importance of a two-state solution.
But they have diverged in their response to the current conflict, with China leaning toward the Palestinians and India leaning toward Israel in what is somewhat of a shift for both countries.
Those leanings are reflected in the way their populations discuss the conflict online, where misinformation and racist remarks are inflaming tensions as they have the world over.
China: ‘Brotherhood’ with the Arab world
Beijing was the first stop Monday for a group of Arab and Muslim foreign ministers who are visiting all five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council as they seek to end the hostilities. The delegation representing Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, the Palestinian Authority and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which includes 57 Muslim member countries, called for an immediate cease-fire.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Beijing “holds good friendship and brotherhood with Arab and Islamic countries,” and that it has “always firmly supported the just cause of the Palestinian people to restore their…
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