China has held talks with Syrian opposition representatives in a sign that it has begun hedging its bets on the latest Arab country shaken by unrest.
A delegation from the Syrian National Committee for Democratic Change wrapped up a four-day visit to Beijing on Thursday, during which it met Zhai Jun, deputy foreign minister, and other senior diplomats, a foreign ministry spokesman said.
Beijing has been struggling since last weekend to justify its role, with Russia, in blocking a United Nations resolution that urged Bashar-al-Assad, the Syrian president, to step down amid mounting bloodshed, as security forces clashed with opponents of the regime.