China has expressed its support for the demands western nations are making of Hamas. On the eve of a visit to China by a senior Palestinian minister, Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao issued a statement in line with the demands being made on Hamas by Israel, the United States and most western nations, urging Hamas to "earnestly abandon violence, recognize Israel and accept the agreements already reached." Minister Mahmoud A-Zahhar arrives in China on Wednesday for talks with China and representatives of twenty-two Arab nations.