POLITICAL ISSUES
EGYPT
1. Chinese envoy visits Egypt on Palestine and Syria
Beijing, Tuesday, 4 June 2013
As part of his regional tour, China’s special envoy to the Middle East Wu Sike visited Cairo and met the secretary general of the Arab League and discussed China’s four-point plan to push forward the peace process in the region. He also spoke about China’s concerns on the recent developments in Syria’s crisis.
Source: Xinhua, Beijing; See also: People’s Daily, Beijing

IRAN
2. China expresses commitment to resolving Iranian nuclear issue through diplomatic channels
Vienna, Wednesday, 5 June 2013
Cheng Jingye, China’s envoy to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said that China is firmly committed to pursuing dialogues and negotiations in resolving the Iranian nuclear issue and added that China has been playing a constructive role in resuming the six-party talk with Iran and maintaining diplomatic process in resolving the nuclear issue.
Source: Xinhua, Beijing; See also: People’s Daily, Beijing

3. China to constructively work for talks on Iran nuclear issue: spokesperson
Beijing, Tuesday, 18 June 2013
At a press briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said that China would continue to make constructive efforts to advance peaceful negotiations regarding the Iranian nuclear issue following the election of Hassan Rouhani as president.
Source: Xinhua, Beijing; See also: People’s Daily, Beijing

ISRAEL
4. China backs efforts to revive Palestine-Israel talks
Beijing, Tuesday, 4 June 2013
At a press briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei said that China backed the international community's efforts to revive Palestine-Israel negotiations and added that China urged both sides work together and restore dialogue at an early date.
Source: Xinhua, Beijing; See also: People’s Daily, Beijing

5. Israeli president calls for closer bilateral cooperation with China
Jerusalem, Tuesday, 18 June 2013
In an interview, Israeli President Shimon Peres said that Israel and China should strengthen their people-to-people exchanges and expand their cooperation in the fields of agriculture, science and technology.
Source: People’s Daily, Beijing

6. China committed to boosting Mideast peace process: envoy
Beijing, Wednesday, 19 June 2013
On the sidelines of the UN meeting in support of Israeli-Palestinian Peace, China’s special envoy to the region Wu Sike said that Beijing was pro-active in advancing the Middle East peace process.
Source: People’s Daily, Beijing

PALESTINE
7. Palestinian delegation heads for Beijing for UN peace meeting
Ramallah, Sunday, 16 June 2013
A Palestinian delegation headed by Bassam Al-Salhi, the leader of the People’s Party headed for China to participate in the UN Meeting in support of Israeli-Palestinian Peace in Beijing. The delegation also comprised of Palestinian envoy to the UN Riad Mansour and officials from Fatah and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
Source: Xinhua, Beijing

SYRIA
8. China calls for fair inspection on Syrian chemical weapons
Beijing, Friday, 14 June 2013
During a press briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said that China was hopeful that the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria would be fair and objective in investigating the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria.
Source: Xinhua, Beijing; See also: People’s Daily, Beijing

9. China eyes early Geneva meeting on Syria, warns against escalation
Beijing, Tuesday, 18 June 2013
A Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said that the priority for resolving the Syrian conflict was to hold the Geneva peace conference and avoid any action that might escalate tensions.
Source: Xinhua, Beijing; See also: People’s Daily, Beijing

SECURITY ISSUES
LEBANON
10. China, Lebanon to further promote military ties
Beijing, Tuesday, 25 June 2013
Fang Fenghui, member of the Central Military Commission of China and Chief of General Staff of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, met Walid Salman, the Chief of Staff of the Lebanese Armed Forces and discussed exchanges and cooperation between the two militaries.
Source: People’s Daily, Beijing

MISCELLANEOUS ISSUES
11. China to build new university hospital in Tunisia
Tunis, Saturday, 8 June 2013
The Vice Minister of National Health and Family Planning Commission of China Ma Xiaowei met Tunisian Health Minister Abdel Latif Mekki and promised aid to build a new university hospital in the Tunisian industrial city of Sfax.
Source: Xinhua, Beijing

12. Beijing Opera performance to make Tunisian debut
Beijing, Saturday, 8 June 2013
The Beijing Opera would be performed for the first time in Tunisia as part of the 49th edition of the Carthage International Festival.
Source: People’s Daily, Beijing

13. China exports stainless steel metro to Turkey
Chashang, Sunday, 9 June 2013
A stainless steel metro vehicle manufactured at CSR Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive Co. Ltd. was exported to Turkey, the first of its kind to be exported to the European market.
Source: Xinhua, Beijing; See also: People’s Daily, Beijing

15. Beijing on alert for Middle East virus
Beijing, Tuesday, 18 June 2013
The Beijing Municipal Bureau of Health called for vigilance among the general public and urged travellers returning from the Middle East who develop respiratory infections to see a doctor as soon as possible.
Source: People’s Daily, Beijing

16. Israel streamlines visa policy for Chinese tourists
Beijing, Saturday, 22 June 2013
The Embassy of Israel in China announced a set of new visa policies for Chinese tourists at the 2013 Beijing International Tourism Expo which included simplified visa application process for business visas and other favourable policies targeting residents of the cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
Source: Xinhua, Beijing

17. Chinese painting and calligraphy exhibition in Bahrain
Manila, Tuesday, 25 June 2013
An art exhibition was hosted by the China International Culture Communication Centre at the international auto-drome of Bahrain. The exhibition featured more than 70 works from over 30 renowned contemporary artists.
Source: China Daily, Beijing

COMPILED BY DIPANWITA CHAKRAVORTTY

Dipanwita Chakravortty is a doctoral candidate in School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.  Email

As part of its editorial policy, the MEI@ND standardizes spelling and date formats to make the text uniformly accessible and stylistically consistent. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views/positions of the MEI@ND. Editor, MEI@ND: P R Kumaraswamy