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China takes more nuanced stance on Syria By Kathrin Hille, Michael Peel in Beijing, in Abu Dhabi The Syrian regime bombardment that on Wednesday killed dozens of civilians, including two western journalists, has thrown fresh scrutiny on Russia and China over their block on international action against President Bashar al-Assad. China declined to follow Russia in rebuffing a meeting of western and Arab states later this week on resolving the Syria crisis, in a move that shows a small but potentially significant political gap between Moscow and Beijing. While Russia has rejected an invitation to a gathering of so-called “Friends of Syria” in Tunis on Friday, China – which joined Russia this month in vetoing a UN Security Council resolution against Mr Assad – said it was still studying the offer. Beijing’s more emollient stance – part of a flurry of diplomatic activity on Syria this week – highlights how Chinese policy is motivated primarily by a general doctrine of non-intervention rather than the kind of direct political and security ties that link Damascus and Moscow. “Russia’s position is a bit harder, a bit more clear-cut, and China is more low-key,” says Li Weijian of the Shanghai Institute for International Studies. China and Russia have stood side by side in opposing efforts to force Mr Assad to step down. But China’s more nuanced response to the Friends of Syria conference is a reminder of the differences between the two countries’ attitudes. While Moscow has a long history of close ties with the Assad government and is the country’s largest arms supplier, Beijing’s handling of the Syria crisis is much less driven by such direct interests, say Chinese specialists. China has less than $20m in investment in Syria, and about 30 companies and little more than 100 workers – a far smaller number than the 30,000 who had to be repatriated from Libya. Beijing’s insistence on non-intervention is one of the oldest and most consistent principles in its foreign policy. It