<\/p>\n
China called for an immediate ceasefire following the US and Israel\u2019s attacks on Iran, as President Xi Jinping\u2019s government weighs its options in the Middle East.<\/p>\n
\u201cChina is highly concerned about the US and Israel\u2019s military strikes against Iran,\u201d a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in a statement\u00a0Saturday.<\/p>\n
\u201cChina calls for an immediate cessation of military operations, to avoid further escalation of tensions, to resume dialogue and negotiations, and to safeguard peace and stability in the Middle East.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nThe statement came prior to the death of Iran\u2019s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the airstrikes later Saturday. China has yet to comment directly on his passing.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
The US and Israel began striking targets across Iran on Saturday, with President Donald Trump urging Iranians to overthrow the government in a conflict that threatens to spiral across the oil-rich Middle East.<\/p>\n
Read:\u00a0Iran leader Ali Khamenei is dead after US-Israel airstrikes<\/p>\n
China-Iran trade is heavily tilted in Beijing\u2019s favour.<\/p>\n
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\nChina accounts for about a third of Iranian trade, while the Islamic Republic represents less than 1% of global commerce for the world\u2019s second-biggest economy, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
While Beijing buys some 90% of Iran\u2019s oil exports in defiance of US sanctions, the Middle East nation is ultimately a replaceable energy partner for China.<\/p>\n
Read: Iran strikes disrupt thousands of flights, Dubai Airport shutdown<\/p>\n
Even so, about a third of China\u2019s crude supply comes from ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway next to Iran linking the Persian Gulf to the open seas. After Saturday\u2019s bombing, a number of oil tankers avoided sailing through the strait, as some shipowners took a cautious approach.<\/p>\n
China has strengthened diplomatic and economic ties with Tehran in recent years, although it has no formal alliance with the Islamic Republic.<\/p>\n
\nXi supported Iran\u2019s bid to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization security club in 2023, as well as its ascension to the Brics bloc \u2014 groupings Beijing has bolstered to challenge US power on the world stage.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Although Beijing signed a 25-year strategic cooperation agreement in 2021, which included a reported $400 billion in Chinese investment pledges, implementation of that deal has been weak. China\u2019s economic interests in the wider Gulf region now far outweigh its economic ties to Iran.<\/p>\n
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Read:
Trump\u2019s attacks push India, Brazil and SA closer together
Brics leaders condemn attacks on Iran, urge Israel to leave [July 2025]<\/p>\nBeijing has also been reluctant to provide weapons to Iran over concerns about US sanctions. During the last flareup of Middle East tensions, China was\u00a0quick\u00a0to condemn the attacks and offered a four-point blueprint for the Israel-Iran war, but stopped short of offering material support.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis practice of openly attacking a sovereign state and pressuring it to overthrow its regime is nothing short of power politics and hegemonism,\u201d China\u2019s official Xinhua News Agency said in a commentary after the latest strikes.<\/p>\n
\u201cAggressive and hegemonic behavior will ultimately backfire.\u201d<\/p>\n
China Daily, an English-language propaganda\u00a0unit\u00a0of the Communist Party, also condemned the US and Israel\u2019s attacks on Iran.<\/p>\n
The military actions taken by the US and Israel \u201cbreed chaos, inviting a cycle of retaliation that could engulf the entire region,\u201d the China Daily wrote in an\u00a0editorial\u00a0on Saturday. \u201cThe priority must be the prevention of a broader war.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a9 2026 Bloomberg<\/p>\n<\/div>\n