Chinese President Xi Jinping has announced a $100 million aid package for Palestine aimed at easing the humanitarian suffering in the Gaza Strip.
Xi made the announcement during talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, who wrapped up his three-day state visit to China on Friday.
"China will provide $100 million of assistance to Palestine to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and support its recovery and reconstruction,” said Xi during a meeting held on Thursday in Beijing, according to a statement by the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
He said that the world today is "far from tranquil,” as complicated international political disputes and conflicts continue across various regions.
"China and France will work together for the realization of a comprehensive, just, and lasting solution to the Palestinian question at an early date,” said Xi.
Regarding the Ukraine crisis, Xi told Macron that China "supports all efforts conducive to peace and hopes that parties can reach, through dialogue and negotiation, a fair, lasting, and binding peace agreement that is accepted by all parties concerned."
"China will continue to play a constructive role in the political settlement of the crisis. At the same time, China firmly opposes any irresponsible attempt to shift blame or smear others," he stressed.
After Macron's meetings in Beijing, the Chinese and French leaders traveled to Chengdu, a city in southwestern Sichuan province, where they held informal talks on Friday.
Regarding Xi's announcement, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Friday that this aid will be used for post-conflict reconstruction to help improve Gaza's humanitarian situation and alleviate Palestinian suffering.
"China firmly supports the just cause of the Palestinian people in restoring their legitimate national rights and will continue working relentlessly with the international community for a full and lasting ceasefire in Gaza, the easing of the humanitarian situation there, and an early political settlement of the Palestinian question on the basis of the two-state solution,” Lin told a news conference in Beijing.
