Self-Determination for Some: The Palestinians and the Uyghurs in China’s Foreign Policy

China’s first ever white paper publicly outlining its policy toward the greater Middle East affirmed Beijing’s support for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, as well as an independent Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital. Beijing’s support for Palestinian independence stands in stark contrast and apparent tension with its oppression of its Uyghur minority, who, like the Palestinians, aspire to an independent state of their own in present-day Xinjiang. What explains China’s continued support for an independent, Muslimmajority Palestinian state despite its brutal crackdown of its own Muslim minority at home? Drawing on the literature on sovereignty and self-determination, I argue that these policy positions are not * J.D., 2019, University of Pennsylvania Law School; B.S., 2014, Ohio State University. I would like to thank Professor Jacques deLisle for his invaluable feedback and advice in developing the idea for this comment. A special thank you also to my parents and brother for their constant support and encouragement. All errors are mine. 1 ANTONIO CASSESE, SELF-DETERMINATION OF PEOPLES: A LEGAL APPRAISAL 5-6 (1995). Published by Penn Law: Legal Scholarship Repository, 1138 U. Pa. J. Int'l L. [Vol. 41:4 inconsistent, and can indeed by reconciled. As a doctrinal matter, international law has differentiated between permissible selfdetermination claims in the context of decolonization on the one hand, and impermissible secessionist claims on the other. In its foreign relations, China has consistently highlighted this distinction and characterized Xinjiang as an integral part of Chinese territory, with the necessary implication that Uyghur self-determination claims are irredentist in nature. Whatever the legalities, in practice, China has managed to reconcile these policies due in no small part to its significant economic and political leverage and its framing of its Uyghur policy as a security issue immune from criticism. By maintaining this careful balancing act, China has facilitated—or at least eliminated one possible roadblock to—the creation of a greater role for itself in the Middle East, while not abandoning its historical support for the Palestinians or emboldening secessionist movements at home. https://scholarship.law.upenn.edu/jil/vol41/iss4/5 2020] Palestinians and Uyghurs in China’s Foreign Policy 1139