China–Israel relations
China–Israel relations (In Chinese : 中以关系 Zhōng yǐ guānxì. In Hebrew : יחסי ישראל-סין Yechasei Yisrael-Sin) comprise the diplomatic, economic, cultural, and military ties between the People's Republic of China and the State of Israel. In 1950, Israel was the first country in the Middle East to recognize the PRC as the legitimate government of China. However, China did not establish normal diplomatic relations with Israel until 1992. Since then, Israel and China have developed increasingly close economic, military and technological links with each other. Israel maintains an embassy in Beijing and is planning to open a new consulate in Chengdu, its third in Mainland China. China is Israel's third largest trading partner globally and largest trading partner in East Asia. Trade volume increased from 10 billion in 2013. Some commentators note similarities between the cultures and values of the two nations. Convergence of interests has made them natural partners. China is one of the few countries in the world to concurrently maintain warm relations with Israel, Palestine, and the Muslim world at large. China's status as a potential world power has prompted Israel to maintain close ties with the country and integrate China's global influence with Israel's economic management. In the 1930s, David Ben-Gurion, then leader of the Yishuv in Palestine, proclaimed that China would be one of the great world powers of the future. For some time after the 1949 Chinese revolution, the People's Republic of China (PRC) was diplomatically isolated, because the United States and its allies, including Israel, recognized the Republic of China (ROC, commonly known as Taiwan after 1949) as the sole legitimate government of China. The Nationalist government of the ROC had been historically sympathetic to the Zionist cause, while Sun Yat-sen affirmed his support for the creation of a Jewish state. In 1947, however, the ROC abstained from voting in the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine.
