As 14 Palestinian leaders lined up for a photograph in Beijing on Tuesday, they each made sure to shake hands afterwards with one man: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

Tuesday’s Palestinian unity talks, where an agreement for a post-war Gaza framework was signed, were an opportunity for China to provide a rival platform to Israel and its western allies on the future of Palestine and the Middle East.

“China’s major goal is to gain consent and acknowledgment among regional countries regarding its rising status as a responsible country with a superior moral role compared to the US,” Razan Shawamreh, a Palestinian expert on China’s foreign policy in the region, told Middle East Eye.

For Hamas, China-backed discussions give it a rare platform to participate in international forums.