The purpose of this article is to expose the extreme contradiction observed today among people who identify as members of the Global South, as alternative thinkers, as leftists, or simply as human beings with moral principles who side with the just cause of stopping the ongoing Palestinian genocide committed by the Israeli Terror State.

This stark contradiction is evident in two entirely opposing views on what a powerful, sovereign China should do regarding the aforementioned genocide. Dimitri Lascaris shares my perspective, arguing that a country with China’s power and leverage has a clear obligation to do far more than it has done so far. In contrast, KJ Noh positions himself at the opposite end of the spectrum, claiming that those in the West responsible for Israel’s crimes are the ones who should act, while criticizing Westerners like Dimitri Lascaris for daring to call for Chinese intervention.

That extreme contraction is found in the 2 absolutely antagonistic opinions about what mighty sovereign China should do regarding the ove mention genocide. Dimitri Lascaris takes the same side as I do, which is to argue that a country with the power and leverage to China has, surely has the obligation to do far more than was it has being doing so far. KJ positions himself in the other end of the spectrum, claiming that those in the West responsible for the Israeli crimes are the ones who should do something, and therefore complains about all Westerner like Dimitri Lascaris or myself for daring to demand Chinese action.  

This article is also is also a reaction to two interviews recently given by Dimitri Lascaris and KJ Noh on the same YouTube channel. The key difference is that KJ Noh’s interview included harsh yet flawed attacks against Dimitri Lascaris. You can watch both interviews here:

In both interviews, the two guests mentioned and commented a document that you should definitely read: Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.

***

Using the same flawed logic KJ Noh employed in his interview, one might ask how sensible it would have been to tell the German Nazis to stop being Nazis in the hope of finding a peaceful solution to the crimes of the Third Reich. Would that have been more effective than having dozens of countries fight against Germany during WWII? Sure enough, the leaders of Nazi Germany would not have cared one bit about such “rotten-peace” calls to simply “drop the weapons.”

Or, if you prefer, one could try asking fellow Europeans to stop supporting Ukrainian Nazis or to stop backing the Ukraine-NATO regime. But guess what? They almost certainly would not listen. The Nazis enjoy being Nazis, and the supporters of the Ukrainian regime in Europe enjoy supporting that regime. Therefore, as a European who opposes the current Nazi-aligned regime in Ukraine, what should I do? Should I try to change the minds and behavior of my fellow Europeans, likely with no effect, or instead encourage people from other parts of the world to support Russia, thereby building pressure on their governments—governments that are not Nazi, supremacist, or imperialist—to take action in favor of the Russian side?

(full album here)

Returning to the case of the Palestinian genocide, why can’t any human being with moral principles—Western or not—pressure and demand that powerful China take action regarding this ongoing atrocity? Why? KJ Noh has the answer: “Because it is your country’s fault, not China’s fault!” Really? Is it really that simple?

Shockingly, this seems to be his reaction and position in response to the horrendous crimes being committed by Israel in Palestine: I'm Chinese, so it is not my problem! Wow, really?

(more here)

By the way, do not think I am picking on KJ Noh just because I do not like him or because he's Chinese, or because he's Asian or any other stupid reason. No at all. I am just disgusted with his fallacious arguments and his refusal to see us all as equal human beings, all united in the moral duty to stop the genocide of Palestinians.

Actually, I used to watch a lot of the content he produces, which is often great, except when the subject directly or indirectly envolves China. For instance, he did a great job in this interview defending North Korea (not the only subject of the interview):

***

KJ Noh wants to convince us that we are all naive and fail to understand the “5D chess” that China is supposedly playing to save Palestine. I have heard the same type of arguments here in China, from both Chinese people and pro-China Westerners. These arguments are fallacious. They are nonsensical. Objectively, China is doing nothing. To call us dumb or naive for not seeing the brilliance in the so-called Chinese measures—or in reality, the lack thereof—is just empty rhetoric.

I have encountered this behavior before. What I want to say is this: these people claim to show empathy toward those suffering in Palestine. Sure, it is easy to rightly blame Western supremacists for their crimes. Sure, it is easy to say it is up to the West to stop committing these hideous acts in collaboration with Israel. But who is talking about Western nations or China specifically? We are talking about humankind. We are talking about the existence of powerful nations, like China, with the ability and means to stop these horrific crimes.  The point is not to criticize China for the fun of it, the point is to ask fellow human beings to stop the crimes against Palestine. The point is: to stop the crimes against Palestine! That is the point!

This person also argues that China is not the only country trading or collaborating with Israel. True. But just because other people are shooting innocents in the streets does not mean I should do the same. Furthermore, other nations may lack the leverage China has to compel Israel to stop killing Palestinians. Smaller or weaker countries may fear U.S. punishment if they act, but China does not face this problem. China’s recent victory against Trump’s trade war demonstrated, once and for all, that it has the leverage necessary to stop US-backed crimes such as the genocide of Palestinians. On top of that, China continues to trade extensively with Israel compared to other nations.

He also claims that stopping trade with Israel would be illegal, arguing that only the UN could authorize such actions. But isn’t it already illegal to commit genocide, as Israel is doing? Isn’t it clear by now that the UN functions as a tool of Western imperialism? Wasn’t Israel created by the UN? Has the UN ever been effectively used to fight Western imperialism? Weren't China and its past allies direct victims of UN decisions, such as during the 1951–53 UN/US-led war against North Korea? Why, then, should China care so much about UN legality while remaining inactive in the face of genocide?

And no, KJ Noh’s claim that China “trades with everyone” does not hold up. He even mentioned countries like Venezuela and Cuba as examples—but the facts prove otherwise. Despite Cuba being larger than Israel, Cuba’s exports to China are twenty times smaller than Israel’s. Trade with North Korea is practically irrelevant compared to trade with South Korea or Israel.

Venezuela’s case is even more revealing. Today, Venezuelan exports to China are ten times smaller than Israeli exports. Worse still, before the U.S. launched its full-scale economic war against Venezuela around 2013, Chinese imports from Venezuela were actually twice as large as its imports from Israel. But after the murderous U.S. sanctions campaign, China’s imports from Venezuela collapsed—from double Israel’s level to ten times less. This proves, beyond doubt, that China can and has waged economic war on a country without going through the UN. So why, KJ Noh, why do you claim it would be “illegal” for China to act against genocidal Israel, when China had no problem cutting Venezuela off (supposedly, a Chinese ally) for no other reason than follow US hegemonic orders?

How is this possible, KJ Noh? Why did Chinese imports from Venezuela drop twenty-fold at the very moment they should have increased twenty-fold to help Venezuela withstand U.S./EU economic warfare? Why did China, instead of helping, effectively side with Washington and Brussels in this hideous crime? Why is China able to punish a country committing no crime—Venezuela—yet refuses to punish a country actively committing genocide—Israel?

One can only conclude that China, driven by its own selfish interests, is willing to punish even its allies—nations like Venezuela that embody humanistic, revolutionary, democratic principles—just to protect its trade ties with the U.S. Fine, if China wishes to be as cold-blooded and neoliberal as the imperialist West, focusing only on money and ignoring the human suffering it could actually stop, then so be it. But in that case, KJ Noh, don’t tell us that China is playing “5D chess” to save Palestine.

For the skeptical, here are the data regarding China’s imports from the countries mentioned above:

Venezuela 2012

Venuzuela 2023

Cuba 2023

Israel 2023

North Korea 2023

South Korea 2023

***

KJ Noh seems deeply offended by the fact that Westerners dare to criticize China for its inaction. I see two main problems with this reaction. First, and I have also witnessed this in China, many Chinese people become very defensive when they hear non-Chinese criticize China. As if China were a country beyond reproach, untouchable, immune to criticism. To me, this is just another form of supremacism: the idea that China is “too good” or “too great” to be questioned.

Second, KJ Noh compares only Westerners with Chinese. But what about everyone else? Here in China, I know many foreigners from very different countries, and most of them are not Westerners. I know people from Mali, Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, Nigeria, Morocco, the Solomon Islands, and more. Almost all of them support the Palestinian cause. Many of them, just like me—a European—also criticize China for its inaction regarding the ongoing genocide. So what does KJ Noh have to say to people like this? Surely, it is not Mali’s fault. Surely, it is not Madagascar’s or Cameroon’s fault. These countries cannot do much to help Palestine. But China can. That is the central point of the criticism, whether it comes from Westerners or from non-Western foreigners: China actually has the means to act, yet it chooses not to.

KJ Noh is missing the point—deliberately, it seems. KJ Noh is acting in a supremacist manner, just like many Chinese citizens do, no different from Western supremacists who insist with this type of mindset: "Do not criticize my country. Do not criticize my civilization, no matter what. We are above criticism.” Very typical of Western supremacists, but equally common in China. 

Meanwhile, Palestinians are being killed by the dozens and hundreds every single day. The issue is not China. The issue is the ongoing genocide—and the fact that China has the means to help stop this horrific crime, yet does nothing.

I would argue that KJ Noh is, in fact, a deeply racist person. He is racist because he denies that the Chinese people have any obligation to act against the ongoing genocide in Palestine. Why not? If we all belong to the same human species, why should Chinese people be exempt from moral responsibility? If the crimes are objectively hideous, then what makes Chinese people so “special” that they supposedly have no ethical duty to do anything at all? I personally know kind and clever Chinese people who I respect, having the same reaction as KJ Noh: we side with Palestine, Israel is a criminal state, but we the Chinese have nothing to do with it. I find such positions appalling!

Secondly, I see this person as both racist and supremacist because he does not allow non-Chinese people to criticize China—even when their arguments are valid. As I argued in a previous article: with great power comes great responsibility. That principle should apply to any member of the human species, regardless of their country or ethnicity. Period.

To position China on some untouchable pedestal is the clearest sign of supremacism. I have seen this attitude not only here in China but also in Europe. actually, the desease of supremacism is far worse in Europe. Still, it exists in China too. Many Europeans perceive themselves as unique, special, somehow “different” from everyone else. I reject this entirely. Whether in Europe or in China, the issue is the same: it is wrong, plain and simple, and there is no way to accept such illogical stand, be it in China, in Europe or elsewhere.

***

As for the personal attacks on Dimitri Lascaris, that is just another example of fallacious argumentation. KJ Noh attacks Lascaris personally, rather than engaging with his arguments. He attacks the person, not the arguments. This only shows that KJ Noh is unable—or unwilling—to counter the very valid points raised by Dimitri Lascaris Lascaris.

***

Meanwhile, Chinese officials continue to officially claim they wish to continue to have good relations with Israel. For instance, just two months ago, Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Bin said:

Chinese people and the Jewish people enjoy a traditional friendship. China is ready to strengthen exchanges and cooperation with Israel in various fields."

Meanwhile, deranged genocidal Israeli officials like the Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich keep delivering speeches of this kind: