Until the outbreak of hostilities in Gaza, China and Israel had enjoyed relatively warm relations. EPA/Etienne Oliveau/pool China: why there has been a sudden ‘surge’ of antisemitism in the People’s Republic

Antisemitism in China and east Asia is different to how it is generally understood in Europe. In Europe, antisemitism is a unique discourse of hatred against Jewish people. It draws upon a long history of persecution and was heavily embedded within Christianity, culminating in the Holocaust.

Jewish people were “othered” as troublemakers and disrupters. Antisemitic tropes further positioned them as plotting world domination and engaging in cultist practices.

In contrast in East Asia, Jews and Israel have tended to be attached to a positive image of western modernity and achievement. This results in a widespread form of positive stereotyping known as “philosemitism”.

Philosemitism, the opposite of antisemitism, is the attachment of desirable and admirable characteristics to Jewish people and Israel. Chinese philosemitism includes positive notions of Jewish political governance, national identity, moral refinement, advanced civilisation and a will to survive.

These beliefs go back to the arrival of Jewish traders and investors in China in the 19th century. Today, such beliefs are transferred to a collective quality admired in Jews and the state of Israel. This culminates in an embodied image of heightened intelligence, wealth and a strong focus upon the family, with Israel being regarded as brave and innovative.

Philosemitism has been able to prosper in East Asia and operates as a convenient platform for Israeli international relations. It’s a form of soft power that is often referenced (and welcomed) by both Israeli and East Asian political actors in high-level diplomatic interactions.

But stereotypes can very quickly switch between xenophilia and xenophobia as a result of sudden changes in the wider context. The antisemitism we see in China now is largely an inversion of philosemitism. This change was triggered when philosemitic stereotypes began to be threatening rather than useful to Chinese nationalism.

Specifically, the current Gaza conflict affirmed Israel’s connection to the US. This positioned the country as part of a perceived western “plot” to undermine China and promote US dominance. To many in China, Israel and Jewish people became part of a cluster of behaviours and beliefs associated with conspiratorial discourse about a threatening western axis.

This links to other nationalist conspiratorial beliefs in China, attached to issues as diverse as constructing COVID-19 as part of a US plot against China, and the Russia-Ukraine war being a US-instigated conflict designed to threaten China and Russia. In cyberspace, these have easily become mixed up with older, European-style antisemitic tropes, and grown substantially.

Conspiracies tend to become more salient during times of increased social instability, with their appeal connected to an individual’s perceived lack of control. These sorts of discussion have risen in Chinese cyberspace during a time when the country’s economy is potentially undergoing a downturn – a situation uncomfortably similar to the rise of antisemitism in 1920s and 1930s Europe during the Great Depression.

While the Chinese internet is tightly controlled, issues discussed online tend only to be addressed if they are in some way threatening the authority of the Chinese Communist Party, or could potentially cause social unrest. With very few Jewish people to directly persecute, antisemitism does not pose an immediate threat to Chinese society. The wider conspiratorial discourses it is part of are also generally in support of nationalist ideology. For both of these reasons, the Chinese state has not intervened to prevent this antisemitism.

It’s important to rethink how we understand antisemitism in the Asian context. In the west, it is typically seen as a unique discourse of hatred in Europe rather than a form of racial stereotyping, as it is in Asia. The latter reflects a general lack of awareness about the dangers of positive stereotypes and how easily these can be upended.

Together with other scholars, I have previously warned that encouraging philosemitic discourse in East Asia is dangerous. So, the “surge” in antisemitism in Chinese cyberspace hasn’t come as a surprise to those of us who study this phenomenon in Asia. Jewish stereotypes have been growing over the past decade in China, but largely as philosemitism, so were not seen as a concern. This is now changing.

FACTS ON FILE
<><>Israel is China’s 2nd largest trading partner,
<><>total trade value reaching a whopping $24.45 billion.
<><>China sides w/ Hamas against Israel
<><>China says Israel’s Gaza incursion went beyond self defense.

Both the Trump and Biden administrations had restricted sensitive technological exports to China. As a result, China turned to cooperative Israel. China’s direct investment in Israel’s IT industry, especially in chips and semiconductors, now has increased.

In 2017, Israeli PM Netanyahu said China accounts for one-third of the investment in Israeli high technology, which includes US military technology the US shares w/ Israel, its strongest ally. In the ’90s, Israel sold military equipment and technologies to China, including the Harpy missile system.

This incident chilled relations between the United States and Israel, with Israel being suspended from its status as Security Cooperative Participant in the Joint Strike Fighter program. However, on 6 November 2005, Israel stated that it has been re-admitted into the program.

The US had to pressure Israel to stop sharing US military technology w/ China. Yet Israel still doesn’t restrict China from acquiring dual-usage technologies that could have military implications against the US.

A succession of US administrations warned Israel about its growing tie with China, sharing concern about China using Israel as a backdoor to access sensitive technologies from the US.

The most vocal objection to Sino-Israeli ties came from the Trump administration. When former Secy of State Mike Pompeo visited Israel in 2019, he warned Israelis that the CCP “engages in spying through its commercial state-owned enterprises and presents risk through its technology systems. Pompeo said China’s actions posed a risk.

Unfortunately, Israel largely brushed aside the warnings. Like many other countries, China’s massive market has enticed Israel. Plus, the Israeli government hopes China’s good relationships with Arab nations may help Israel.

This year, Netanyahu was working on a Sino-Israeli free trade agreement and planned to visit China. But China’s siding w/ Hamas should wake up Israel’s leaders to the reality that Communist China’s relationship with Israel is purely transactional.

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