China has dispatched six warships to the Middle East amid the escalatingconflict between Israel and Hamas, as reported by the media. The 44th navalescort task force of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) was conductingroutine operations in the region and spent several days in Oman last week.
After participating in an exercise with the Omani navy, the Chinesewarships departed from Muscat for an undisclosed location on Saturday. Thistask force comprises the Zibo, a guided missile destroyer, the frigateJingzhou, and the supply ship Qiandaohu, all of which are set to bestationed in the Middle East, coinciding with Israel’s preparations for apotential ground invasion of Gaza.
For the past six months, the PLA task force has been engaged in escortmissions for shipping in the Gulf of Aden north of Somalia. Chinese leaderXi Jinping expressed his views on the Israel-Hamas conflict, stating that atwo-state solution for an independent Palestine is the “fundamental wayout.” He emphasized the need for an immediate ceasefire to prevent theconflict from escalating further and causing a humanitarian crisis.
Read Top Stories
It’s worth noting that China’s deployment follows the recent dispatch of asubstantial arsenal by the United States to the Middle East.