Arafat visited China ______.

Chinese President Jiang Zemin gently urged Palestinian President Yasser Ararat Tuesday to choose an appropriate time to declare statehood after Ararat lobbied Beijing for support for a plan to declare an independent state.
    Ararat met Jiang in the northeastern coastal resort of Beidaihe after flying into Beijing Monday morning from Pakistan, state media said. China’s top brass is gathered in Beidaihe for its annual policy setting meeting.
    "We believe that the Palestinian National Authority led by Ararat will think it over and declare statehood at an appropriate time to achieve the best possible results, "state media quoted Jiang as saying.
    Arafat’s visit came two days before Israel’s Shimon Peres arrives in China to present his side of the story as the Israelis and Palestinians battle for Beijing’s support ahead of a September 13 deadline for a draft peace accord.
    Negotiations between Ararat and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak at Camp David in the United States collapsed in July due to differences over the status of Jerusalem, the city holy to both sides and which both claim for its capital.
    Ararat has vowed to declare an independent state after the deadline with or without a peace deal, but analysts say he has struggled to drum up support during a whirlwind tour of 18 countries in less than three weeks.
    China is unwilling to offer explicit backing as it tries to maintain a diplomatic balance between the two, analysts say.
    "China has always been very balanced and we are very happy with that", said a Beijing-based diplomat.
    "Any kind of unilateral action or declarations will only jeopardize the peace and not help it.
    China would continue to work with the international community for a long-term settlement of the Palestinian issue, Xinhua said.
    China has raised its profile in the Middle East this year, repeatedly urging the two sides to follow the principle of "land for peace" and calling on the international community to help them resolve their differences.