China's Diplomatic Signal to Israel and Palestinian Leader's Support for Muslim Crackdown

China's warm reception of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, including announcing a "strategic partnership" between China and Palestine, sends a diplomatic signal to Israel. While business delegations from China have been returning to promote trade with Israel, political-diplomatic relations are on the decline. China's involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict could potentially tangle Israel, and even though Abbas's visit may not yield significant benefits, Israel cannot afford to turn a cold shoulder on its close friend, the United States, as this animosity could harm Israel's relations with the world's second-largest economy.