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In their first meeting with China’s president in eight years, U.S. congressional leaders asked Xi Jinping to pressure Iran not to escalate tensions in the Middle East.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who is in Beijing with a bipartisan delegation of senators, also urged Xi to step up China’s response to a weekend Hamas attack on Israel in which gunmen from the Palestinian group massacred civilians and Taking hostages.
“Some of us asked China to use its influence in Iran and not let the war spread,” Schumer told reporters after Monday’s meeting. “He (Xi Jinping) said they exert influence on Iran in many different ways and we ask them to do everything they can.”
He said China “said it would convey this message to the Iranians.” Iran denied any role in the raid and the foreign ministry said it would respond to any threats and accusations of its involvement.
A rare meeting between six senators and China’s president lasted 80 minutes, longer than expected, following diplomatic efforts by U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration to improve underlying relations with China.
Several top officials from Biden’s cabinet have visited Beijing this year ahead of Xi’s possible appearance at next month’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum in San Francisco.
But Beijing has yet to confirm whether the Chinese president will attend. Xi Jinping suddenly skipped last month’s Group of 20 leaders’ summit in Delhi for the first time since he became president.
Chinese state media focused on the visit to the U.S. Congress, with the official Xinhua News Agency prominently displaying a photo of the two sides talking at a large table filled with flowers on its homepage.
“Xi Jinping pointed out that China-US relations are the most important bilateral relations in the world,” Xinhua News Agency reported.
“Competition and confrontation are not in line with the trend of the times… Xi Jinping reportedly told visitors that the “Thucydides Trap” is not inevitable. He was referring to the fact that competition between established powers and emerging powers often ends in war.
Schumer also said China changed its statement on the Hamas attack after he complained to Xi Jinping and Foreign Minister Wang Yi that the previous response lacked sympathy for Israel.
But China on Monday still stopped short of directly criticizing Hamas, using language that could be interpreted as targeting both sides.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that China is deeply saddened by the civilian casualties caused by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “We also oppose and condemn violence and attacks against civilians.”
She reiterated China’s earlier calls for a ceasefire and a “two-state solution” to create an independent Palestinian state.
“China considers itself a friend of Israel and Palestine,” she said.
The Israeli Embassy in Beijing also issued an appeal to Beijing on Twitter, saying “we also hope that China can provide solidarity and support to Israel at this difficult time for Israel.”
In other comments, Schumer said the delegation urged its Chinese counterparts to provide a more level playing field for American companies and to stop selling in China precursor chemicals used to make fentanyl in the United States.
Additional reporting by Liu Nian in Beijing
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