- China likely influenced the US-Iran ceasefire by urging Tehran to negotiate through intermediaries
- President Trump credited China for helping bring Iran to the negotiating table for a truce
- China engaged Pakistan, Turkey, and Egypt to quietly promote peace talks with Iran
China, Tehran's biggest trade partner, was likely a major guiding force behind the two-week ceasefire agreement between the US and Iran. According to US President Donald Trump, it was Beijing that helped get Tehran to the negotiating table.
"I hear yes," the US President told news agency AFP when asked if China was involved in getting Tehran to negotiate on a truce.
For Beijing, there is an incentive to see the war subside before Trump travels to China in mid-May to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping. Citing demands of the war, Trump has been postponing his China trip, initially set for the end of March.
China's Truce Role
Quoting sources, the Associated Press reported that Beijing played a quieter but influential role by nudging Iran towards a path of peace by working with intermediaries, including Pakistan, Turkey and Egypt.
Sources told the American agency that Chinese officials were in touch with Iranian officials as the negotiations were evolving.
While China had not publicly commented on its involvement, one official revealed that Beijing had been working through intermediaries, including Pakistan, Turkey, and Egypt, to leverage its influence on Iran.
What China Said
It is China's latest push for a more prominent role in global affairs. So far, the Chinese foreign ministry has not issued a statement on Beijing's role. But the Chinese Embassy in Washington earlier said Beijing has been working "tirelessly for peace" since the outbreak of the war.
Mao Ning, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, also said, "All parties need to demonstrate sincerity and quickly end this war that should not have happened in the first place."
She said China was "deeply concerned" about the impact the conflict has on the world economy and energy security.
China's Veto
On Tuesday, China, alongside Russia, also vetoed a UN resolution urging states to coordinate efforts to protect commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. China's UN envoy, Fu Cong, argued that adopting the resolution while the US threatened the survival of civilisation would have sent the wrong message.
