Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi in Beijing on Wednesday and called for the Strait of Hormuz to be reopened “as soon as possible,” China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. It is Mr. Araghchi’s first trip to China since the Iran war began on February 28.
Mr. Wang told Mr. Araghchi that achieving a lasting ceasefire was an “urgent priority” and that Beijing was ready to help de-escalate tensions. “China considers that a complete cessation of fighting must be achieved without delay, that it is even more unacceptable to restart hostilities, and that continuing to negotiate remains essential,” the ministry statement said. Mr. Araghchi told reporters Iran would only accept a “fair and comprehensive agreement” and would defend its “legitimate rights and interests” in the talks.
The meeting comes a week before US President Donald Trump is due in Beijing for a May 14–15 summit with President Xi Jinping, where the Iran war is expected to feature prominently. Earlier in Washington, Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on Beijing to press Tehran to lift its chokehold on the only maritime exit from the Gulf.
Mr. Araghchi’s Beijing trip follows his recent travel to Moscow, where he met Russian President Vladimir Putin, and visits to Pakistan and Oman. He had spoken with Mr. Wang by phone at least three times since hostilities began. The in-person meeting marks a clear escalation in Tehran’s diplomatic outreach as Iran enlists China and Russia behind its Hormuz position.
The diplomatic push comes against a sharply deteriorating military backdrop. A Pakistan-brokered ceasefire took effect on April 8, but follow-up talks in Islamabad collapsed and Iranian negotiator Ali Larijani told reporters on Tuesday that real talks “have not even started.” Hours later, US officials told Axios that Washington and Tehran were closing in on a one-page memo to end the war.
