BEIJING: China on Friday urged the United States to play “a constructive role” in the Middle East after its Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke with his US counterpart Antony Blinken over the phone.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken used the call to ask Beijing to use its influence to discourage Iran from striking Israel, the State Department stated. Concerns of Iran’s retaliation have grown following an Israeli strike on April 1 levelled an Iranian diplomatic building in Damascus, Syria.
On Friday China confirmed the call had taken place, saying Wang Yi “expressed China’s strong condemnation of the Israeli attack” while stressing the “inviolable” right to security of diplomatic institutions and diplomatic missions and the need to respect the sovereignty of Iran and Syria.
“China will continue to play a constructive role in the resolution of the Middle East issue… and contribute to cooling down the situation,” Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning added. “The United States side in particular should play a constructive role.”
Iran’s leadership has vowed to strike back after the Israeli attack, which killed seven members of the country’s elite Revolutionary Guards, including two senior generals.
The United States has repeatedly made public appeals for China to do more to address the Middle East crisis, including through pressure on Iran, which supports the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.
Beijing in turn has criticized the United States as biased toward Israel.
“This round of escalation is the latest manifestation of the spillover from the Gaza conflict, and it is imperative that the Gaza conflict be put to rest as soon as possible,” Mao said Friday. She said Beijing was calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
President Joe Biden said Wednesday that US support for Israel’s security was “ironclad,” despite his criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s conduct of the war in Gaza.
It was unclear if Wang Yi and Antony Blinken had discussed matters other than the conflict.
“I believe that the foreign ministers of the two countries should have exchanged views on other issues of common interest, but I do not have specific information,” Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.
