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<\/a>China envoy tells JNS: Israel an \u2018important partner\u2019 despite tensions over Iran, infrastructure concerns<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\nAtara Ruderman<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Chinese Ambassador to Israel Xiao Junzheng told JNS in an exclusive interview last week that Beijing views Israel as a \u201cfriend,\u201d and stressed the importance of strengthening bilateral ties.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIsrael is a friend of China and an important partner,\u201d he said, while defending China\u2019s ties to Iran and rejecting security concerns over Chinese infrastructure and other activities in the Middle East.<\/span><\/p>\n The interview took place on Thursday, on the sidelines of the 10th Annual Conference on Israel\u2019s China and Indo-Pacific Policy, hosted by SIGNAL Group and held at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. The conference offered panel discussions with interregional experts, academics and diplomats, including Xiao and Japanese Ambassador to Israel Arai Yusuke. Panel discussions echoed themes of hope, criticism and questions about the future of the region.<\/span><\/p>\n Israeli officials have become increasingly critical of China\u2019s diplomatic and strategic relationship with Iran in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 massacre in 2023.<\/span><\/p>\n According to Iranian customs data reported by The Wall Street Journal<\/i>, approximately 1,300 shipments containing dual-use components were sent from China to Iran\u2019s Defense Ministry during the first six months of 2026. Dual-use components can have civilian and military applications, including in missiles and drones.<\/span><\/p>\n Xiao maintained that China\u2019s ties with Iran were conducted within the framework of international law. \u201cWe are not a party to the conflict between the U.S., Israel and Iran,\u201d he told JNS.<\/span><\/p>\n Israeli officials have raised red flags about Chinese infrastructure in the country for years.<\/span><\/p>\n A 2022 strategic assessment by the Institute for National Security Studies cited a warning from former Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) director Nadav Argaman, who stated, \u201cChinese involvement in Israel is especially dangerous for everything related to strategic infrastructure and large companies in our economy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n China\u2019s major undertakings in Israeli infrastructure include the Carmel Tunnels (a set of toll tunnels in Haifa), the Red Line of the Tel Aviv Light Rail, the new Ashdod port, the Bayport Terminal in Haifa (operated by the Shanghai International Port Group), and power plant and pumped-storage projects.<\/span><\/p>\n Asked by JNS about infrastructure-related security concerns, Xiao defended China\u2019s involvement, saying, \u201cIsrael is not the first country in the Middle East to have infrastructure cooperation with China, and it will not be the last, either in this region or elsewhere in the world.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n He went on to explain that China has cooperated on many projects, including airports, ports, railways, subways, highways and oil refineries. No other country with infrastructure cooperation with China has expressed such security concerns, only Israel, he said.<\/span><\/p>\n Xiao maintained that no Israeli government agency had presented Beijing with evidence that Chinese infrastructure projects posed a threat to the Jewish state\u2019s security.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI must remind our Israeli friends that cooperation between us serves the interests of both sides,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is also critical for Israel, especially during wartime.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen this country was under threat from missiles and drones, those infrastructure projects maintained operation and provided significant assistance to the Israeli government and people,\u201d he added.<\/span><\/p>\n Xiao said this should be viewed as a contribution to the resilience of Israeli society.<\/span><\/p>\n During his public remarks, Xiao condemned antisemitic statements and calls for Israel\u2019s elimination, affirming Israel\u2019s right to existence and development. He also highlighted China\u2019s historic ties to the Jewish people, recalling its role in accepting Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi persecution.<\/span><\/p>\n The Museum of Jewish Heritage\u2014A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in Lower Manhattan estimates that nearly 18,000 Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi persecution found refuge in Shanghai during the 1930s and 1940s. Shanghai did not require entry visas until 1939.<\/span><\/p>\n Asked by JNS about China\u2019s relationship with Israel following the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre, the ambassador said, \u201cBoth sides need to do more.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Xiao pointed to efforts to strengthen bilateral ties, citing an Oct. 15 meeting between Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the 7th Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) Summit in Azerbaijan.<\/span><\/p>\n Israel and China have a long history of cooperation. In January 1950, Israel was the first Middle Eastern country to recognize the People\u2019s Republic of China. In 1992, Israel\u2019s Joint Communique established diplomatic relations between the two countries; Jerusalem recognized Beijing as the only legal government representing China and Taiwan, recognizing the One-China Policy.<\/span><\/p>\n Over the decades, Israel-China relations have grown to include economic ties, reaching a high in the 2010s.<\/span><\/p>\n On economic cooperation, Xiao told JNS, \u201cIsrael excels at making breakthroughs from zero to one, while China excels at scaling those breakthroughs from one to 100. We\u2019re confident that Israeli entrepreneurs from all sectors will find opportunities in the vast Chinese market.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Zawarto\u015b\u0107 publikowanych artyku\u0142\u00f3w i materia\u0142\u00f3w nie reprezentuje pogl\u0105d\u00f3w ani opinii Reunion’68,<\/em> China envoy tells JNS: Israel an \u2018important partner\u2019 despite tensions over Iran, infrastructure concerns Atara Ruderman Xiao Junzheng defended Beijing\u2019s ties to Tehran, but said \u2018Israel is a friend of China.\u2019 Chinese Ambassador to Israel Xiao Junzheng at a KKL-JNF tree planting ceremony at the Israel-China Friendship Forest in the northern Negev, on Nov. 4, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[33,24],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135293"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=135293"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135293\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":135310,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135293\/revisions\/135310"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=135293"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=135293"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=135293"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nXiao Junzheng defended Beijing\u2019s ties to Tehran, but said \u2018Israel is a friend of China.\u2019<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n
![](\"https:\/\/static.jns.org\/dims4\/default\/e209162\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/900x375+0+113\/resize\/1440x600!\/format\/webp\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fstatic.jns.org%2F5a%2F5e%2F1dab1ad7462baefad506d4e43b06%2F051126-3.jpg\")
Chinese Ambassador to Israel Xiao Junzheng at a KKL-JNF tree planting ceremony at the Israel-China Friendship Forest in the northern Negev, on Nov. 4, 2026. Credit: Yoav Lin\/KKL-JNF Photo Archive.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\nThe interest of both sides<\/b><\/h4>\n
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