For the first time in the history of Israel and China, the presidents of the two countries made a quick phone call on Wednesday. Several Israeli presidents have visited the People’s Republic of China since diplomatic ties were established in 1992, but this is the first time the presidents have spoken on the phone.
The interposed conversation “was conducted in a friendly and positive spirit,” the Israeli presidency said in a statement. Israeli President Isaac Herzog and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping also discussed “opportunities to strengthen bilateral Israeli-Chinese relations on the occasion of the thirtieth anniversary (in 2022) of the establishment of diplomatic relations.” They also exchanged invitations to visit their respective countries to mark this anniversary.
The thorny subject of Iranian nuclear power
The two presidents also discussed “global and regional strategic issues”, and in particular the thorny subject of Iranian nuclear power. “President Herzog stressed the need to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear capabilities,” he said. After five months of suspension, negotiations between Tehran and the other countries still party to the 2015 agreement (Germany, China, France, United Kingdom, Russia) are to resume in Vienna on November 29 to try to relaunch the pact.
This international agreement is supposed to drastically limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for easing the sanctions imposed on Iran, which insists on the peaceful nature of its program. The United States, which unilaterally withdrew from the agreement in 2018 and reinstated sanctions against Iran, will participate indirectly in the Vienna talks. Since Washington’s withdrawal, Tehran has gradually freed itself from the commitments made in this agreement.
