A delegation from the Israeli parliament visited Taiwan last week, led by Boaz Toporowski, a current member of the Israeli parliament and chairman of the Taiwan-Israel Friendship Group.
The visit was seen by Israel watchers as another sign that relations with China have cooled following the Oct. 7 terrorist attack by Hamas.
Israel Establishment Although it established formal diplomatic relations with China in 1992 and began a rapidly growing economic relationship, China’s Mao-era support for the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) was forgotten as China opened up its economy. By 2017, China had become Israel’s largest trading partner.
At the same time, Israel asserted that: good relationship Relations with Taiwan include an unofficial embassy known as the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office. alike, a similar tightrope Although they moved back and forth between Russia and Ukraine over the years, the Israelis avoided disagreements and continued to be welcomed in both Beijing and Taipei.
That all started to change after the October 7 terrorist attacks, when China disappointed Israel by refusing to condemn Hamas. Within a week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had already Criticize Israel went beyond the scope of self-defense in its military operations in Gaza and imposed “collective punishment” on Palestinians.
Relations between China and Israel further deteriorated as the Gaza conflict continued and China joined calls for an “immediate ceasefire” to protect Hamas from the consequences of its actions.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explained Trade relations with China were blooming like a “marriage made in heaven” when the two countries announced a “transformative comprehensive partnership” in 2017, but that marriage now appears to be in trouble. .
washington institute is assumed In November, he said Beijing could not help but indulge its “tendency to use distant conflicts as opportunities to weaken the United States and score points in the ‘Global South.'”
China also believes that Israel values billions of dollars in trade and investment so highly that China could engage in political games with jihadist terrorist organizations, keep its allies in the Middle East in good spirits, and raise the possibility of He seems to believe that while he pretends to be a master negotiator, he will turn a blind eye. The “two-state solution” will finally become a reality. China appears to have been very slow to realize that the scope of Hamas’s atrocities on October 7th had changed the situation forever.
Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) I got it. In January, Israeli leaders in general, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in particular, appeared to favor using China as leverage when relations with some U.S. administrations became strained. Prime Minister Netanyahu, for example, announced he would visit dictator Xi Jinping in Beijing shortly after President Joe Biden refused to visit the White House, citing judicial reform.
“Given China’s reaction to the Gaza war, Bibi’s public efforts to restore relations between Israel and China during the conflict with the United States now appear short-sighted,” CFR said. .
“For years, Israel has managed its economic relationship with China while turning a blind eye to China’s continued anti-Israel positions at the United Nations. “We expected China to gradually change its attitude as the situation becomes more complex,” said Galia Ravi, deputy director of the Diane and Gilford Glaser Israel-China Policy Center in Tel Aviv. . Said of South China Morning Post (SCMP) November.
“I don’t think Israel can maintain the previous level of relations with China. Things have to change, but I don’t know how much change there will be,” Ravi added. .
On Tuesday, SCMP saw Israel’s friendship visit to Taiwan is a sign that relations with China will cool forever.
Outgoing Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen warmly welcomed the Israeli delegation, looking forward to a deeper partnership “based on shared values of freedom and democracy,” and expressing a common commitment to “build more resilient global supply chains.” showed desire. Don’t rely too much on China.
Toporovsky described Taiwan as a “true friend” and promised that Israel “will always remember Taiwan’s support after the October 7 attack on Israel.”He also mentioned Iran’s April 14 attack on Israel was almost completely neutralized by Israel’s high-tech missile and drone defenses.
“Taiwan and Israel have something in common: building small but strong democracies in harsh environments. It’s time for our friendship to grow even stronger and for us to cooperate in more areas.” he said.
Mol Sobol, assistant professor of international affairs at Taipei’s Tamkang University, said the Oct. 7 attack and its aftermath left Israel with no idea China is “a friend, maybe even a partner,” but that it might be able to fight back with more cooperation. He said that he recognized that he was a serious “threat”. We are actively working together with Taiwan.
