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China will be more open than Russia to reconsidering its opposition to removing Assad from office. PRC policy makers have never placed Syria in the same category as such vital interests as Taiwan, Tibet, Xinjiang, and perhaps the South China Sea. China's trade with Syria is a very small share of its overall trade. Unlike Russia, China supplies far fewer weapons to Syria than Russia, Syria's main military backer. Nor does China have access to a navy facility there.