Peace in Middle East benefits all

The ceasefire in Syria, which is due to commence on Tuesday, offers hope that the crisis in Syria may finally be resolved. The international community needs to give the Syrian government and the Istanbul-based "Syria National Council", which the opposition groups have recognized as their only legitimate representative, time to negotiate.

Though the Western media say the peace plan is "doomed" to fail, the international community should be patient and help the related sides carry out the peace plan, rather than "wait for and celebrate" such a "failure". A Syria in chaos will not help anyone but just bring more humanitarian crises.

China has been constantly striving for peace in the country and the region. It has made peace and regional stability its priorities and because of this it has remained consistent in its opposition to military intervention in Syria. In order to protect civilians, China has twice vetoed UN Security Council resolutions on Syria. Maybe those who claim this is irresponsible should remember that China agreed with UN Resolution 1970 concerning sanctions against Mummar Gadhafi's regime in Libya, which was supposed to prevent a humanitarian crisis, and look what happened there. China has never been opposed to reform in the Middle East; all it opposes is military intervention by external powers to overthrow regimes in the name of "democracy and freedom".