Palestinian support for China in Taiwan dispute not surprising

The Palestinian leadership's links with the communist regime in Beijing have been very deep since long. Interestingly, Palestinian leaders have had a tradition of backing oppressive regimes and organizations around the world.

In the wake of US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi's recent visit to Taiwan, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas's office in Ramallah issued a statement which says that "the State of Palestine stands by the friendly People's Republic of China." The statement expresses Palestinian "support for China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, stressing its right to defend its sovereign, security and development interests."

Observers say Taiwan has been a self-governed territory since the Communists came to power in Beijing in 1949. It has over the years evolved to be a full-fledged democracy. Interaction between leaders of the United States or any democratic nation ought to be treated as normal. No responsible government in the world would allow itself to approve of the measures, including military drill, China undertook in the region in the wake of the Pelosi visit to the island nation.

India's Ministry of External Affairs has done well to caution China against "any unilateral action to change the status quo" in the region. The Palestinian presidency has no such consideration for democratic Taiwan. The Palestinian leadership's links with the inhuman communist regime in Beijing have been very deep since long. Communist China has long been supportive of Palestine in its conflict with Israel.

Last year, in an open debate of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi criticized Israel (and the US) for their unwillingness to stop t he conflict. The minister called Israel to exercise restraint in terms of its actions against Hamas.

Interestingly, Palestinian leaders have had a tradition of backing oppressive regimes and organizations around the world. In the 1940s, Palestinian leader Mufti Hajj Amin al-Husseini was very close to Adolf Hitler. At that point of time, the Palestinians, like Nazi Germany, perceived the British, the Jews and the Communists to be their common enemies.

In the 1970s and '80s, the Palestinians backed the Irish Republican Army (IRA) against the British. The PLO provided guns, sabotage devices and special training to IRA members. In 1980, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat backed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein when the latter invaded Iran. In 1990, Arafat backed Saddam in his invasion of Kuwait. Currently, the Palestinian leaderships is on very fine terms with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.

The observers suggest all responsible, pro-people governments in the world must be watchful about the activities of the oppressive regime-friendly Palestinian leaders. They could coordinate together a strategy aimed at promoting democratic thinking in Palestine.

(Jagdish N. Singh is a senior journalist based in New Delhi. He is also Senior Distinguished Fellow at the Gatestone Institute, New York)

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