From The Washington Post, via Sudan Tribune:
Last week Wang Guangya, China’s ambassador to the United Nations, made a formal statement on Darfur that calls into question China’s claim to be treated as a responsible international player. Mr. Wang began by saying that China wants U.N. peacekeepers to be deployed in Darfur, calling this a “good idea and realistic option,” one that should be done “as soon as feasible.” But then he went on to explain that China was refusing to support the U.N. resolution calling for such a deployment. Unless China changes its position, the result may well be tens of thousands of civilian deaths.
Mr. Wang argued that China could not support the resolution because Sudan’s government was not yet ready to accept U.N. peacekeepers on its soil. But the reason that Sudan is refusing to allow in peacekeepers is that it has faced little international pressure to do so. The United States and its European partners have called upon Sudan to let the U.N. force in. But China, which has enormous leverage over Sudan because of its investment in Sudanese oil fields, has failed to push the Sudanese into accepting the “realistic option” of a U.N. deployment. Indeed, China lobbied hard and successfully to prevent Russia from supporting the peacekeeping resolution, further undermining pressure on Sudan’s government to allow in peacekeepers. [Full Text]
