China is making gains in the Middle East — Uyghurs could be key to stopping them 

China's ambitions in the Middle East are no secret. Since then, October 7 Hamas attackChina I have used it The United States supports Israel in aligning itself with its Arab peoples, hoping this will force governments to distance themselves from the United States.

In most of the Middle East, from Turkey to the Arabian Peninsula, anti-israel demonstration It is occurring. America's support for the Jewish state is a diplomatic responsibility for its traditional partners in the region, even though many of these governments covertly support Israel's efforts to crush Hamas. .

In China, anti-Israel demonstrations are confined to online spaces, but are still allowed to flourish on both official and social media. Chinese Communist Party propagandists and “netizens” have a spouse Anti-Semitic sentiments, likening Jews to Nazis, accusing Israel of being “murderous” and praising Adolf Hitler.

“Positive” stereotypes of Jews have long been common in China, with Jews seen as hardworking, intelligent and good with money. However, due to the Chinese government's policy, rejection Even condemning the brutal attack on Hamas and reminding China of its unwavering partnership with Israel and the United States in the days that followed, the essentialist assessment of Jews was understandably upended.

Externally, the Chinese government is throwing the full weight of its influence behind Hamas.the support for ceasefire Both of its criticisms of Israel amount to a cynical instrumentalization of the conflict to gain influence in the Middle East at the expense of the United States. Domestically, the party-state is reinforcing China's nationalist turn by stirring up anti-Israel and anti-Semitic sentiment, and countering Xi Jinping's efforts to portray China as besieged by the United States and its allies. It plays a role of emphasizing that only the Communist Party exists between China and China. And complete ruin.

While the United States must continue to support Israel from a moral and strategic standpoint, it must also consider ways to reduce the costs to its diplomatic standing in Muslim-majority societies.

Realistically, the United States simply cannot get Arabs and Turks on its side. The best thing China can do is to prevent it from gaining positions that the United States is willing to compromise because of its support for Israel.

China's anti-Israel public diplomacy campaign appeals to the religious identity of Middle Easterners as Muslims and as victims of pagan Israelis. It's as crude as it is effective and charming, but it's also a shameless act of gaslighting.

of The silent genocide against Uighurs and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang This is the greatest persecution of Muslims by non-Muslims since at least the Yugoslav wars. China is doing what Israel's harshest critics accuse the Israel Defense Forces of doing: the systematic cleansing of innocent Muslims at the hands of infidels. This genocide is also a closely guarded secret in the birthplace of Islam.

local government did a thorough job About censoring news about Uyghurs. Their newspapers and television networks never cover the issue, concerned about maintaining their burgeoning relationship with China. In June, representatives of the Arab League visited In Xinjiang, it was only possible to conclude that reports of genocide were false.In the same month, Mahmoud Abbas visited Supported China's policies in Beijing and Xinjiang.

In Iran, the government teeth reinforcement It entered into relations with China earlier than other countries in the region, even though the majority opposed the change. It is possible to do so as long as the regime's support base does not oppose relations with China. Such opposition may arise as we learn more about the plight of Chinese Muslims.

To prevent China from becoming the dominant foreign power in the Middle East, the United States should make China synonymous with genocide among the Middle Eastern population. To do so, the State Department's plan to disseminate information about China's crimes must include intentional engagement with local media and civil society organizations in the Middle East and increased resources from the U.S. Agency for Global Media. Those in charge of public diplomacy must get used to outsourcing their messages, especially on social media, by actively engaging with indigenous influencers who can spread information more effectively. Perhaps most importantly, government officials should mention the genocide every time they appear in public in these countries.

Two major obstacles are reluctance to upset partner governments, especially treaty ally Turkey, and America's hollowed-out public diplomacy institutions. The former is a legitimate concern and, like most worthwhile undertakings, can cause short-term headaches and unpleasant conversations. The latter is a more serious challenge, and another wake-up call that a return to great power hostilities requires Washington to regain some of its Cold War strength.

Ideally, a successful campaign to force dialogue on the Uyghurs in the Middle East would lead China to moderate its policies in Xinjiang. Even a small improvement in the situation of oppressed Muslims in China would be a major victory for U.S. policy. But even if the United States were to succeed in halting China's growing influence in the Middle East, it would still be a valuable accomplishment.

Michael Mazza is the Senior Director of the Project 2049 Institute and a Visiting Fellow in Foreign and Defense Policy Studies at the American Enterprise Institute.

Shay Katiri is Vice President of Development and Senior Research Fellow at Yorktown Research Institute.