China assures its support for Iran but calls for de-escalation

BarcelonaChina, one of Iran's main partners, expressed its support for Tehran on Monday in the face of attacks by the United States and Israel. Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke by phone with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araqchi, and assured him of Beijing's support in defending Iran's sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity. This is the first show of firm support from the Chinese giant, in a call that took place at the Iranian president's request. According to a statement released after the phone call, Wang conveyed to Araqchi his support in "protecting Iran's legitimate rights and interests." The Chinese minister stated that Iran has "no choice" but to defend itself after the attack and urged the US and Israel to "immediately halt military operations, prevent further escalation, and prevent the entire Middle East from being drawn into the conflict."

In this way, China does not directly verbalize possible military support for Iran, but endorses the bombings that Tehran is carrying out throughout the region in response to the initial attack by Washington and Tel Aviv that ended the life of the Iranian leader. Despite supporting Iran's right to self-defense, Wang expressed confidence that the country "will maintain national and social stability and address the legitimate concerns of its neighbors," after Iran attacked several countries in the Persian Gulf.

China is one of Iran's main trading partners and its largest importer of oil. On the geopolitical chessboard, the Asian giant aligns itself with Iran. While the statement endorses Iran's attacks in self-defense, Beijing also indicates that it will maintain a stance "of fairness and justice," and expresses its willingness to "continue playing a positive role in preventing the escalation of regional tensions."

For its part, Russia, another of Iran's major allies, condemned the US and Israeli operation in Iran on Sunday, and specifically the assassination of the country's supreme leader. The Russian president described the death of Ali Khamenei as a "cynical violation of all norms of human morality and international law," and conveyed his condolences to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in a telegram.