Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) confronted Chinese President Xi Jinping on the Israel-Palestine conflict during a meeting in Beijing on Monday.

“I urge you and the Chinese people to stand with the Israeli people and condemn the cowardly and vicious attacks upon them,” Schumer told Xi in the meeting, which he attended with a bipartisan group of US lawmakers. “I say this with respect, but I was disappointed by the foreign minister’s statement showing no sympathy or his support for the Israeli people during these tragedies.”

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Schumer had met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi earlier today. Schumer was accompanied with a delegation of U.S. senators, led by Sen. Mike Crapo (R-IA) and himself.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry called for an immediate ceasefire, and reaffirmed its support for an independent Palestine on Sunday. Rather than criticize Hamas or even mention it by name, the Chinese state’s announcement merely described the surprise attack as an “escalation of tensions and violence between Palestine and Israel.”

During the meeting, Wang spoke first, commending recent efforts to calm the tensions between the U.S. and China.

“It is hoped that this visit can help the US side understand China more accurately, view China more objectively, and manage existing differences more rationally, so as to help China-US relations return to the track of healthy development,” Wang said.

Schumer also pushed for “economic reciprocity” between China and the U.S. “The United States does not want decoupling. We want the Chinese people to have economic opportunity. That would be good for America. But China must also provide a level playing field for American companies and workers,” he said. “Most Americans, including our delegation, do not believe that we have that fairness now.”

The American statesmen also met with Shanghai business leaders, discussing fair competition for American companies working in China.

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