As an unprecedented Israeli attack on Iran last week sparks a spiraling conflict between the two enemy states, China has seen an opportunity to cast itself as potential peace broker \u2013 and an alternative voice to the United States. <\/p>\n
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi took up this mission over the weekend, speaking with both his Iranian and Israeli counterparts in separate phone calls, where Wang decried the attack that sparked latest conflict and telegraphed China\u2019s offer to \u201cplay a constructive role\u201d in its resolution. <\/p>\n
\u201cChina explicitly condemns Israel\u2019s violation of Iran\u2019s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity \u2026 (and) supports Iran in safeguarding its national sovereignty, defending its legitimate rights and interests,\u201d Wang said in a call Saturday with Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, according to Beijing\u2019s official readout. <\/p>\n
China\u2019s self-described \u201cexplicit\u201d opposition to Israel\u2019s attack stands in sharp contrast to the country\u2019s response to Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine \u2013 which Beijing refused to condemn as it ramped up its close ties with Moscow. <\/p>\n
It also underscores the hardening of geopolitical lines that have placed China in opposition to the US across a host of global issues. <\/p>\n
Israel launched its aerial attack targeting Iran\u2019s nuclear, missile and military complex early Friday in what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said was an operation to \u201croll back\u201d the Iranian threat to his country\u2019s survival. <\/p>\n
Multiple waves of deadly assaults launched by both sides in the days since have seen mounting casualties and raised the risk of a broader regional conflagration that could involve the United States, which has so far only assisted in Israel\u2019s defense against an onslaught on Iranian missiles and drones. <\/p>\n
In Beijing\u2019s eyes, all this gives ample reason to be outspoken on a conflict playing out in a part of the world where it has steadily worked to increase its own economic and diplomatic sway, but where experts say its heft as a powerbroker remains limited. <\/p>\n
For one, as the Trump administration\u2019s \u201cAmerica First\u201d policy has shaken up the US\u2019 traditional position on the international stage, Beijing sees an opportunity to further expand its clout. That\u2019s especially true in the context of countries across the Global South, where Israel has received stark condemnation over its ongoing assault on Gaza. <\/p>\n
Beijing is also a key diplomatic and economic backer of Iran and has moved to further deepen collaboration in recent years, including holding joint naval drills, even as it\u2019s sought to balance those ties with its growing relations with countries like Saudi Arabia. Chinese officials long voiced opposition to US sanctions on Iran and criticized the US withdrawal from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, while accusing Washington of being a source of instability and tensions in the region. <\/p>\n
Wang took veiled aim at the US in his call with his Iranian counterpart Saturday, according to the Chinese readout of the call, saying that \u201cChina also urges the countries that have influence over Israel to make concrete efforts to restore peace.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cChina is ready to maintain communication with Iran and other relevant parties to continue playing a constructive role in de-escalating the situation,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n
Speaking to Israeli Foreign Minsiter Gideon Sa\u2019ar on Saturday, Wang said China \u201curged both Israel and Iran to resolve differences through dialogue\u201d and added \u201cthat China is willing to play a constructive role in supporting these efforts,\u201d a Chinese readout said. <\/p>\n
Beijing is unlikely to see benefits from the deepening of tensions in the region, which it relies on for energy and where it has looked to show itself as an emerging powerbroker. For example, it took on a surprise role in facilitating a diplomatic rapprochement between archrivals Saudi Arabia and Iran in 2023. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s unclear what role Beijing could play in the resolution of the current conflict, including how much leverage Beijing has over Tehran, even as lawmakers in Washington have warned of a deepening \u201caxis\u201d between China, Iran, Russia and North Korea. <\/p>\n
But when it comes to managing the direction of this escalation of an entrenched regional conflict, chances are that players both within the Middle East and the US \u2013 which plays a key role in regional security \u2013 will ultimately drive that effort. <\/p>\n
Trump on Sunday posted on social media that Iran and Israel \u201cwill make a deal,\u201d adding that \u201cmany calls and meetings\u201d were \u201cnow taking place,\u201d without providing details. <\/p>\n
But the US president had also suggested another potential leader could have a role to play brokering peace: Vladimir Putin, with whom Trump said he discussed the escalating situation on Saturday. <\/p>\n
In an interview with ABC News, Trump said he was open to the Russian leader, whose forces invaded Ukraine and who has resisted a US-brokered ceasefire in that conflict, serving as a mediator \u2013 another sign of the warming ties between Washington and Moscow, which maintains close relations with Tehran and has condemned Israel\u2019s attack. <\/p>\n
\u201cI would be open to it,\u201d Trump said. Putin \u201cis ready.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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