China offers alternative approach to Mideast predicament

CAIRO -- China's proposal for the Middle East, which was put forward by President Xi Jinping in his speech at the headquarters of the Arab League on Thursday, offers an alternative approach and heralds a potentially brighter future for the region.

In his speech, Xi, who is on a three-nation tour in the region, concluded that dialogues and development are the ultimate solution to the predicament.

Xi's suggestion came at a critical time when people in the Mideast region, especially those in the conflict-ridden zones, are in a dire situation after years of Western intervention that has done nothing more than dragging the region deeper into crisis.

Neither the West's involvement in Iraq, nor the so-called Arab Spring and the five-year Syrian civil war that follows, has been able to relieve the plight of the people and bring back peace and stability to the region.

Even U.S. CIA chief John Brennan acknowledged last October that a military solution is "impossible" in Libya, Syria, Iraq or Yemen.

Political settlement, instead of military confrontation, is the ultimate solution to the tricky issues.

For one thing, only through dialogues and negotiations can relevant parties bridge differences, enhance mutual understanding and jointly seek the best solution.

For another, political settlement allows parties directly involved to choose a path that suits their national conditions, instead of letting an outsider imposing its ideology and development model on them.

Indeed, numerous experts have elaborated on the root cause of the failure of Western intervention in the Middle East, which partly lies in their ill-calculated plans to apply Western models to the region.

Mixed with selfish agendas and brimming with manipulative desires, it's no accident that Western interference only led to a deterioration of the regional security situation.

Besides dialogues, the future of the region largely depends on its economic development, on which China has shown the willingness and the ability to offer support and engage in cooperation, as demonstrated in Xi's speech.

Xi, who believes that turmoil in the Middle East stems from the lack of development, announced a host of moves including loans, financial aid and common investment fund to help improve livelihood and promote development in the Arab world.

China, the biggest developing country that has witnessed striking growth in the past few decades, understands more than any nation the benefits of development and the preciousness of peace, which makes China a perfect partner in pursuing peace and development.

China will neither look for proxies nor try to fill any "vacuum" in the Middle East, as Xi has made clear. What China wants is mutually beneficial cooperation. That is why it invites all nations in the region to take part in its Belt and Road Initiative, among other things.

It's advisable for all players in the region to abandon pride and prejudice, avoid zero-sum mentality, seriously consider China's proposal and join hands in solving the Middle East predicament.