'The mask has slipped' – Tuvia Gering on China, Israel and Hamas
Chinese Whispers16 Okt 2023

'The mask has slipped' – Tuvia Gering on China, Israel and Hamas

When China brokered a historic detente between Saudi Arabia and Iran earlier this year, it seemed that a new phase in world history – and certainly in Chinese foreign policy – had opened up. Instead of the US being a policeman of the world, it was the rising power, China, that was stepping into that role. Whereas Chinese foreign policy had previously only really cared about promoting trade and silencing dissidents, it seemed that perhaps, now, Beijing was taking a more leadership role in global diplomacy and security issues.

And yet the events of the last week and China’s response to them have shown that perhaps the country isn’t ready for that responsibility just yet. In response to the horrors unfolding in Israel and later Gaza, Beijing has given only lukewarm statements, calling for 'relevant parties to remain calm, exercise restraint and immediately end the hostilities to protect civilians'. At no point has it condemned Hamas by name.

So what does this mean for China’s grander ambitions in the Middle East? With me to discuss is Tuvia Gering. During peacetime, his full time role is as a researcher on China and the Middle East, with the Israeli thinktank the Institute for National Security Studies and he is also a nonresident fellow in the Atlantic Council.

But in the last week, as with all Israelis, his life has been changed forever. He’s now been called up for active duty.

What you’re about to hear is an incredibly well informed but raw contribution from an expert whose research interests have come crashing into his real life.

Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.


For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.


Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(122)

New podcast: Quite right! with Michael Gove & Madeline Grant

New podcast: Quite right! with Michael Gove & Madeline Grant

Michael Gove and Madeline Grant launch Quite right!, The Spectator’s new podcast promising sanity and common sense in an increasingly unhinged world. This week, they talk about Labour’s deputy drama, ...

10 Sep 202518min

A compilation of Chinese Whispers: understanding China

A compilation of Chinese Whispers: understanding China

As Chinese Whispers comes to an end, here is a compilation of some of the best discussions Cindy Yu has had across the podcast to understand modern China and President Xi. On this episode you can hear...

5 Mai 20251h 37min

What does it take to be 'an old friend of the Chinese people'?

What does it take to be 'an old friend of the Chinese people'?

** Chinese Whispers is coming to an end. Later this year, Cindy Yu will be joining The Times and The Sunday Times to write a regular column on China. To stay abreast of her latest work, subscribe to h...

7 Apr 202537min

From Chimerica to Cold War II: how US-China relations soured

From Chimerica to Cold War II: how US-China relations soured

** Chinese Whispers is coming to an end. Later this year, Cindy Yu will be joining The Times and The Sunday Times to write a regular column on China. To stay abreast of her latest work, subscribe to h...

24 Mar 202536min

Rana Mitter on the legacy of Sun Yat-sen

Rana Mitter on the legacy of Sun Yat-sen

Walking around Taipei a couple of years ago, I spotted a familiar sight – a bronze statue of a moustachioed man, cane in his right hand, left leg striding forward. The man is Sun Yat-sen, considered m...

10 Mar 202543min

What China's planned mega-dam means for Asia

What China's planned mega-dam means for Asia

Just before the end of 2024, Chinese state media Xinhua slipped out an announcement – the long discussed mega-dam in Medog County, Tibet, has been greenlit. When built, it will generate three times mo...

24 Feb 202528min

Have America's chips controls backfired?

Have America's chips controls backfired?

Beginning in the first Trump presidency and expanded under Joe Biden, the US has taken a strategy of technologically containing China through restricting its access to cutting edge semiconductors. As ...

10 Feb 202557min

What is China's 'United Front' agenda?

What is China's 'United Front' agenda?

** Chinese Whispers is nominated in the Political Podcast Awards 2025. Vote for it to win the People's Choice category here **When Chinese spy scandals break, like the latest involving Prince Andrew a...

27 Jan 202533min

Populært innen Politikk og nyheter

giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
forklart
aftenpodden-usa
popradet
stopp-verden
i-retten
dine-penger-pengeradet
fotballpodden-2
det-store-bildet
rss-gukild-johaug
nokon-ma-ga
hanna-de-heldige
rss-ness
aftenbla-bla
e24-podden
rss-dannet-uten-piano
grasoner-den-nye-kalde-krigen
frokostshowet-pa-p5