At China’s initiative, senior representatives of 14 Palestinian factions have held reconciliation talk in Beijing between 21 and 23 July. Wang Yi, the foreign minister of the PRC, attended the closing ceremony of these negociations Tuesday, 23 July.
In his remarks, Wang noted that ”since entering the new era, Chinese President Xi Jinping has put forward proposals and propositions on addressing the Palestinian question, contributing Chinese wisdom and solution for addressing the question. Now, 14 Palestinian factions are gathering in Beijing with the greater good of their nation in mind”.
This is an important historical moment in the Palestinian liberation cause. China commends the reconciliation efforts made by all the factions, and congratulates them on the success of the Beijing dialogue and the signing of the Beijing Declaration.
Wang Yi
Foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a news briefing today, that the declaration commends China’s sincere effort to support the rights of the Palestinians, to end division and bring about a unified position among the Palestinian factions. The declaration stresses the need to hold, under the auspices of the UN, an international conference with a full mandate and broad-based participation from the region and beyond.
According to the declaration, the parties agree to realize national unity among all factions under the framework of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, Mao said.
The declaration reaffirms commitment to establishing an independent State of Palestine with Jerusalem as the capital city based on relevant UN resolutions and ensuring the integrity of Palestinian territory including the West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza.
Mao Ning
Parties stressed the need to take practical steps to form a new Palestinian national council and have agreed to activate the provisional Unified Leadership framework. All have agreed to set up a collective mechanism to fully implement the provisions of the declaration and create a timetable for the implementation process, Mao added.
Regarding the conflict between Israel and Gaza, Wang presented the three-step initiative of China:
- a comprehensive, lasting and sustainable ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and humanitarian assistance
- uphold the principle of “Palestinians governing Palestine” and restarting post-conflict reconstruction
- Palestine to become a full member of the UN and begin to implement the two-State solution
Head of the Fatah delegation, Mahmoud al-Aloul, and head of the Hamas delegation, Musa Abu Marzouk, delivered remarks on behalf of the Palestinian factions. They noted that China holds an important place in the hearts of Palestinian people, and expressed sincere appreciation for President Xi and China’s unchanging, firm support and selfless assistance to Palestine.
Diplomatic envoys from Egypt, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Russia and Türkiye were also present.
Mustafa Barghouti, Secretary General of the Palestinian National Initiative, told Al-Jazeera that the agreement goes “much further” than any other reached in recent years. He said its four main elements are the establishment of an interim national unity government, the formation of unified Palestinian leadership ahead of future elections, the free election of a new Palestinian National Council, and a general declaration of unity in the face of ongoing Israeli attacks.
The move towards a unity government is especially important, he said, because it “blocks Israeli efforts to create some sort of collaborative structure against Palestinian interests”.
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