Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, spoke on Monday with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araqchi, assuring him of China’s support in defending Iran’s sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity. This was Beijing’s first show of support for the Tehran regime since the Israeli and US attacks. The contact took place by telephone at the request of the Iranian minister, according to a statement from the Chinese Ministry.
The Chinese minister said Iran has no choice but to defend itself and urged the attackers to “immediately cease military operations, avoid further escalation, and prevent the entire Middle East from being engulfed in conflict.” China supports Iran in “protecting its legitimate rights and interests,” the statement said.
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Iran’s main international partner, China, “has already expressed its position of fairness and justice and hopes to play a positive role in preventing the escalation of regional tensions,” as the conflict is in full swing in the Middle East and has already reached Cyprus.
Despite this support for self-defense, Wang hopes that Iran, “given the serious and complex situation, will maintain national and social stability and consider the legitimate concerns of its neighbors,” after Iran attacked several US targets in neighboring states.
China is Iran’s main trading partner and the main market for its oil. On Sunday, it condemned the assassination of Iranian leader Ali Khamenei during the Israeli and US offensive, describing it as a serious violation of Iranian sovereignty and the United Nations Charter.
Since the attack began on Saturday, China had called for an end to it and condemned the Israeli-US initiative, but no contact with Iranian leaders had been reported.
