Alerts

Aron Shai, China and Israel: Chinese, Jews; Beijing, Jerusalem (1890-2018). Jewish Identities in Post-Modern Society

The present book by Aron Shai may have aimed too high.
Share this

Table of Contents

Aron Shai, China and Israel: Chinese, Jews; Beijing, Jerusalem (1890-2018). Jewish Identities in Post-Modern Society. Academic Studies Press, 2019, 243 pp.

Ever since the publication in 1979 of Yitzhak Shichor’s classic The Middle East in China’s Foreign Policy, 1949-1977, which remains unmatched, along with his many articles over the years on various specific aspects of that policy, encompassing not only the Arab world but also the three major non-Arab powers of the region (Turkey, Iran, and Israel), scholarly circles have awaited some equally authoritative opus that would explore the four decades that have elapsed since. That expectation has been critical since Shichor’s foundational book analyzed Communist China’s foreign policy essentially as it was shaped and carried out in Mao’s era in association with his great disciple Zhou Enlai, who determined its contours and implemented it on the ground.

The present book by Aron Shai, which covers a vast era of 130 years, too vast for a single volume that presumes to record history, may have aimed too high. While Shai may have unconsciously attempted to update Shichor’s narrative to the present, he ended up instead with a rather journalistic survey of events, not only regarding its superficial method of skating over the surface but also in its many factual errors—both linguistic, in the transliteration of names and terms, and historical, all of which cannot be mentioned within the brief scope of this review.

Generally speaking, it is perhaps too ambitious to speak of the “foreign policy” of any nation, let alone that of small and secondary powers, as if their decision-makers met in dark rooms of hidden chanceries to devise ways of ruling the world. In fact, in all the major events of the world, great powers were driven to respond to foreign triggers not of their own making or intention. In the 20th century alone, the two world wars, the Korean and Vietnam wars, the Middle Eastern conflicts, the collapse of communism, and other events have unfolded not because someone planned them as a manifestation of “foreign policy” but as improvised responses to unpredicted developments. It is perhaps more modest and realistic to speak of “foreign relations” between nations, which influence each other and engage in constant dialectics with each other.

That has been true of the relations between China and Israel, notwithstanding the vast disproportion in size. Yet the issue of the Jewish minority in China, which is the focus of the first part of the book—when Jews were stateless and totally at the mercy of their host countries in the Diaspora—was governed by totally different rules than the relations between sovereign countries. Hence this part, which includes an introduction on Chinese Jewry, has nothing to do with Beijing, Jerusalem (part of the book’s title), especially when only half the period of 130 years covered by the book is relevant to the mention of Jerusalem, the capital of Israel since it became a state in 1948.

Apart from the inclusion of ancillary issues that appear to have little to do with the book—as in Chapter 2 on “Moshe and Ya’akov—Two Jews in China” (referring to Moshe [Morris] Cohen and Jacob Rosenfeld)—one of the most striking misjudgments is the author’s approval of Israel’s early decision to yield to American pressure and refrain from pursuing a closer diplomatic relationship with China. The results were to set back normal relations between the two countries for several decades and to allow the PLO to establish its first embassy ever in any foreign country in Beijing in 1965, thus preceding Israel by almost three decades. Shai supports the improvement of Israel’s relations with China but also counsels Israel to revise its relations with Beijing in light of the latter’s recent rift with Washington over the trade balance and the recurring mutual sanctions that the two mammoth powers impose or threaten to impose on each other. Shai is aware, like everyone else, that Israel’s relations with the United States are much more crucial to its security and wellbeing than its ties with China, and that when the chips are down and Israel has to choose between the two superpowers, its choice is evident. That emerged clearly during the Phalcon crisis in the 1990s when Israel had to cancel that multimillion-dollar deal with China for the sale of a military-communications aircraft built on an American-made platform, after Washington raised strong objections that the sale would compromise its national security.

Nevertheless, the book, with the many anecdotal stories it recounts, partly based on unexplored and exotic sources, is not devoid of interest to the general reader. The most intriguing story concerns mythical businessman Shaul Eisenberg’s meteoric rise from refugee status to a mogul of international trade. The author of this review had the unique experience of taking part in that first clandestine delegation that, after much preparation and anticipation, made its way to China in Eisenberg’s private plane on a freezing cold night in February 1979. As an eyewitness and participant in that extraordinary happening, I can vouch for its authenticity, though some of the details and aspects of its background, political circumstances, participants, the content and ambience of the discussions, and the operational results that stemmed from them are not exactly reflective of the narrative that I shared with the author at his request.

All in all, while serious researchers can pass up this volume without losing much, it remains an intriguing story for the general public if not too much is expected of it. For the story of the Chinese Jews, which the book’s subtitle implies that it covers, one can easily find a plethora of well-documented works; regarding the main issue of Chinese-Israeli relations, which has become a major international concern as China rises to superpower status, I believe that Shichor’s books and articles remain the cornerstone of our scholarly knowledge on the subject. Shai’s book, despite its deficiencies, can nonetheless fulfill two useful functions: to update the coverage of the China-Israel story to the present time; and to provide, rather entertainingly, interesting and unexpected accounts of personal, informal, interstate, and international affairs.

Raphael Israeli

Raphael Israeli is a Fellow of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and a professor of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies at Hebrew University of Jerusalem. A graduate of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem in History and Arabic Literature, he received his PhD in Chinese and Islamic History from the University of California, Berkeley in 1974. Israeli has written 30 books and some 100 scholarly articles in the fields of Islamic radicalism, Islamic terrorism, the Modern Middle East, Islam in China and Asia and the Opening of China by the French. His books include The Iraq War: Hidden Agendas and Babylonian Intrigue and Living with Islam: The Sources of Fundamentalist Islam. His most recent book (2012) is The Oslo Process: The Euphoria of Failure
Share this

Invest in JCFA

Subscribe to Daily Alert

The Daily Alert – Israel news digest appears every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday.

Related Items

Stay Informed, Always

Get the latest news, insights, and updates directly in your inbox—be the first to know!

Subscribe to Jerusalem Issue Briefs
The Daily Alert – Israel news digest appears every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday.

Notifications

The Jerusalem Center
The Gaza Flotilla Is a Fraud

Far from a humanitarian mission, the latest 70-vessel spectacle on its way to Gaza from Italy is a costly act of political theater @FiammaNirenste1 @JNS_org

11:28am
The Jerusalem Center
The Assassination of Abu Obeida – Why Is Hamas Remaining Silent?

Senior Israeli security officials note that such silence is not new; Hamas often delays its statements following targeted Israeli assassinations, raising questions whether this stems from attempts to verify the information or from a deliberate strategy of ambiguity https://x.com/jerusalemcenter

11:25am
The Jerusalem Center
The Impact of Radical Legal Ideology: From the Classroom to the International Forum

Massive funding of Critical Legal Studies-style academic and extracurricular programs promotes anti-Western ideas and undermines international community institutions and legal conventions https://x.com/jerusalemcenter

11:23am
The Jerusalem Center
Western Countries Focus on Iran Technicalities, Ignore Ideological Bent

The West must look beyond nuclear “offsides” and confront the core issue: a regime in decline, anchored to a dying leader, ruling over a weary population hungry for change x.com/jerusalemcenter

11:19am
The Jerusalem Center
Israel, Gaza, and the Race Against Time

The Trump proposal to create a 10-year trusteeship levels the playing field and provides an opportunity for the Egyptians to open its border with Gaza @Dan_Diker

11:15am
The Jerusalem Center
Canada investigating Israeli-Canadian IDF soldiers?
JCFA senior researcher, Amb. Alan Baker slams the probe as a “political PR stunt with no legal basis.” “This isn’t justice—it’s a betrayal. Canada is siding with PLO propaganda over facts.”
11:29am
The Jerusalem Center
What makes a child believe killing a #Jew is justified?

In PA textbooks, Jews are called liars and frauds; their fate: elimination. This is #indoctrination—not #education. But change is happening. On East to West, @IMPACT_SE CEO Marcus Sheff exposes how #UNRWA-funded schools are fueling extremism—and what real reform looks like.  Listen now on Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/2JHqh973U  Watch on YouTube: youtu.be/8OkJTGNfVUc

11:43am
The Jerusalem Center
Highlights from the @Jerusalem_Post Annual Conference in NYC:

Dr. @Dan_Diker, President of the JCFA: “October 7 wasn’t just an attack on Israel — it was a blow to the U.S. on Israeli soil. It demands moral clarity and a united front between Israel and the U.S. to defeat jihadist terror.”

2:20pm
The Jerusalem Center
@XAVIAERD says it like it is

Well, @XAVIAERD says it like it is: If you’re part of “#Queers for #Palestine,” he’ll pay for your flight to #Gaza. Go see for yourself how they treat LGBTQ+ people over there. Don’t miss this bold take on the Israel-Hamas war and the woke right.

2:32pm
The Jerusalem Center
“This isn’t Israel vs. Hamas — it’s the frontline of the free world.”

“This isn’t Israel vs. Hamas — it’s the frontline of the free world.” On Our Middle East by @JNS_org, @Dan_Diker@KhaledAbuToameh (JCFA/@GatestoneInst) break it down: If Hamas isn’t crushed, Iran wins. The jihadis—from #Gaza to your campus—get the green light. Diker: “This war is for the West.” No fluff. No filters. Just raw insight from two insiders who actually know what’s going on.  Watch: youtu.be/4Aq_zcbb4Yo

2:15pm
The Jerusalem Center
5/5 Lt. Col. Kalo on East to West with @smartinezamir:

“This operation showcases Israel’s strategic intelligence superiority both regionally and globally. It demonstrates the moral commitment to recovered soldiers and also strengthens Israel’s position with allies.” youtube.com/watch?v=nIvNNi

2:07pm
The Jerusalem Center
4/5 The operation built on intelligence gathered during the 2019 #Baumel recovery

#Mossad agents operated under cover in #Syria for years, visiting a graveyard multiple times under fire to collect remains for DNA matching. The intelligence community’s evolution combines technology, big data analysis, and human intelligence capabilities.

2:02pm

Close