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China supports the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and appreciates efforts to push forward the process in peaceful talks, the Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday told the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a phone call that he is determined to go to the United Nations to bid for full membership.

Their conversation comes three weeks before the UN General Assembly meeting, when it will discuss a Palestinian request to recognize an independent Palestinian state.

Answering questions on China's stance on the request, spokeswoman Jiang Yu said at the ministry's daily media briefing that having their own state is an inalienable right of the Palestinian people, and also the basis on which Palestine and Israel can achieve peaceful coexistence.

"We understand, respect and support Palestine's plan to submit the issue to the UN."

China consistently supports the regaining of the Palestinian people's legal national rights and the establishment of an independent country with East Jerusalem as its capital and with full sovereignty, she added.

"It is good for the lasting stability of the Middle East," Jiang said.

If the UN bid succeeds, Abbas said the Palestinian Authority would discuss the details of a future Palestinian state in talks with Israel.

The move is opposed by both Israel and the United States, which threatened financial sanctions against the Palestinian Authority.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Monday that the bid would "set back peace, and might set it back for years".

Negotiations between the two on Palestinian statehood have been frozen since 2008.

A total of 125 countries recognize the Palestinian state, according to a senior Palestinian official on Tuesday.

China established diplomatic relations with Palestine in 1988.

（中國日報網英語點津 Helen 編輯）

About the broadcaster:

Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.