BEIJING: China said Thursday its foreign minister will embark on a four-nation Middle East tour later this month, as part of the Asian country s rising profile in the region. Yang Jiechi will travel to Egypt, the Palestinian territories, Israel and Syria, as well as Russia, Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told a regular briefing. Yang will meet with officials and discuss bilateral and international issues during his weeklong tour starting Tuesday, Jiang said. She gave no further details. While Beijing is not traditionally a heavyweight in Middle East diplomacy, China in recent years has become more active, seeing stability in the Middle East as helping to secure the oil and gas imports the Chinese economy relies on. China sent its Middle East envoy to the region during the Gaza war early this year to push for an end to the fighting. Beijing had also backed a UN resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire, though the appeal was ignored by Israel and Hamas. The Israel-Gaza border area has been tense but relatively quiet since Israel ended its three-week military offensive, which led to an unofficial truce. Egypt, which borders Gaza, has been trying to mediate a long-term cease-fire. -AP
