The Hindu : China, Japan call for restraint

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Oct 07, 2003

International

International

China, Japan call for restraint

By P. S. Suryanarayana

SINGAPORE Oct. 6. China has said that it "is clearly opposed to any action that will harm the reconciliation process (for peace) between Palestine and Israel''. Commenting on the latest suicide bombing in Haifa, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Kong Quan, said in Beijing on Sunday that China "strongly condemns the .... targeting (of) civilians''.

Beijing, he said, "hopes the two sides (Israel and Palestine) will stop the use of violence and any other actions that could aggravate the situation''. China "is seriously concerned about the deteriorating relations between Palestine and Israel'', he noted. These observations by China, in its capacity as a veto-empowered permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, acquire importance in the evolving context of efforts at the U.N. itself to respond to the situation arising out of Israel's bombing of an alleged terrorist base inside Syria.

Japan, another major player on the East Asian front, called for restraint by both the Palestinians and the Israelis.

The Japanese Foreign Minister, Yoriko Kawaguchi, said Tokyo "strongly expects'' both the Israeli and Palestinian sides to "refrain from taking measures which worsen the situation'' in the current `difficult' stage that was brought about by the latest suicide bombing in Haifa and the Israeli attack against Syrian territory.

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