Academic Fan Hongda argues that viewed against its modern history filled with contradictions and struggles, the Middle East is not in a worse state today, despite the recent rise in military operations in a short span of time.
Politics
Academic Fan Hongda says that the Gaza-Israel war is dividing the world on the lines of whether or not they are on the side of the G7. Although there has been no large-scale military spillover yet, the political spillover of the Gaza-Israel war is obvious. For China, a stable and peaceful Middle East is what it wants most. Thus, it has a great stake in pushing for an end to the war.
Politics
As the leaders of two largest world economies meet in San Francisco this week, Fan Hongda, a visiting scholar at the University of California, Berkeley, explains why there are good reasons for the US and China to cooperate, both in the interests of international relations and bilateral ties.
Politics
In the absence of a solution to the Palestinian issue, the Palestine-Israel peace process will be at a stalemate, unless Israel is able to completely destroy Hamas and other Palestinian anti-Israel forces. In the short term, Israel’s stance on Palestine, especially the Gaza Strip, is likely to harden, says Chinese academic Fan Hongda.
Politics
China’s success in mediating peace between long-term rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran has highlighted the major power’s role as a key player in security in the Middle East. While some international media take it as a sign of China’s ambitions, academic Fan Hongda feels that the peace deal has addressed a common need for all parties, and China has its own way of promoting peace in the region.
Politics
The protests in Iran following the death of 22-year-old Iranian woman Mahsa Amini seem to have put the authorities on the back foot, worsened by the missteps in its responses. The current protests in China have also clearly taken the Chinese government by surprise. Academic Fan Hongda notes that the Chinese authorities can take the example of Iran to see what moves to avoid.
Politics
Even as the protests in Iran continue after more than a month with no sign of abating, all efforts seem futile as external support is not forthcoming. There looks to be little hope of permanent change as the current regime remains firmly in control. Meanwhile, as China expands its global influence, can it stay silent in dealing with the internal affairs of Iran and other countries? Or remove reports of protests from their state media?
Politics
While some pundits have it that Iran sees gaining full membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in terms of geopolitics, Fan Hongda thinks that the more bread-and-butter concern of strengthening economic and trade cooperation is on its mind. But this is not to say that Iran does not harbour ambitions of playing a greater regional role.
Politics
Despite being a third party to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, China has been hit with heavy criticism from the Western powers, especially the US, about its position in the war. Chinese academic Fan Hongda believes that while the West does have a powerful media machine behind it that paints China in an unfavourable light, the latter also needs to reflect on its responses to external conflicts, and its lack of domestic channels for the Chinese to voice their diverse views.