Summary

China has renewed calls for the United States and Iran to negotiate a ceasefire and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, where commercial shipping has been at a near-standstill since the Gulf conflict began earlier this year. In a statement on Friday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said its stance on Iran is "very clear," adding the war has "inflicted severe losses on the people in Iran and other regional countries" and that the conflict "has put a heavy strain on global economic growth, supply chains, international trade order and the stability of global energy supply, which hurts the common interests of the international community." It added: "There is no point in continuing this conflict which should not have happened in the first place. To find an early way to resolve the situation is in the interest of not only the U.S. and Iran, but also regional countries and the rest of the world." High-Stakes Diplomacy in Beijing The ministry's statement came on the second day of talks between Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump, whose arrival on Wednesday marks the first visit to the country by an American president in nine years. Trump has been seeking Beijing’s assistance to use its leverage over Iran to push the Islamic Republic toward a ceasefire deal on terms favorable to Washington. China has so far rebuffed U.S. requests to deploy warships to the strait as escorts or otherwise take on a more direct role in the conflict. China has been pushing for a ceasefire through its own diplomatic channels, the statement said, citing a four‑point proposal put forward by Xi early in the conflict as well as a five‑point peace roadmap issued jointly with Pakistan. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s recent visit to Beijing for talks with his Chinese counterpart also appeared intended to pressure Tehran. “We did discuss Iran. We feel very similar about [how] we want that to end. We don’t want them to have a nuclear weapon. We want the straits open," Trump told reporters following his meeting with Xi in Zhongnanhai, a compound near Tiananmen Square that serves as headquarters for the Chinese Communist Party leadership. Energy Security and the Oil Shock Middle Eastern crude shipped through the strait accounts for nearly half of China’s oil imports, with sanctioned Iranian oil making up roughly 13 percent, according to analyst estimates. China purchases nearly all of the Islamic Republic's sanctioned crude. In terms of exposure to the oil shock, Beijing is better insulated than many Asian neighbors—thanks to its aggressive stockpiling of crude, alternative suppliers such as Russia, and reliance on coal and green energy. But the crisis has pushed up raw material and logistic costs and threatens to squeeze China's export-driven economy. The LNG Vulnerability and Global Supply Chains Meanwhile, China has less of a buffer when it comes to liquefied natural gas, sourcing roughly 30 percent of its liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), leaving it more exposed to a prolonged disruption to shipments. "Spillover from the conflict continues to “put a heavy strain” on global economic growth, supply chains, trade, and energy supply, “which hurts the common interests of the international community,” the foreign ministry said in its Friday statement. "It is important to reopen the shipping lanes as soon as possible to respond to the call of the international community and jointly keep the global supply chains stable and unimpeded." China has been directly involved in diplomacy over the Middle East crisis, sparked when the U.S. and Israel launched their war against Iran on February 28. The conflict, and the threat of Iranian attacks against vessels, has effectively frozen shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint through which flows one-fifth of the world’s oil. Will Xi Buy American Oil? Xi said he “likes the idea” of buying U.S. oil, Trump said in an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity on Thursday. "I told him I'd love to see you buy oil from Texas, and Louisiana, from the United States, Alaska, we've got so much of it, and he said he likes the idea, he'd like to talk about that," Trump said. "I think it'll happen." He added: "They're doing it right now; they're sending Chinese ships up to buy oil." That would mark a break from current policy. China has not imported U.S. crude since May 2025 following Trump’s tariff hikes, and even at its peak in 2020, U.S. oil made up less than 4 percent of China’s imports—meaning any renewed buying would mark a clear break from the current standoff. "It's very much in [Iran's] interest to get the strait reopened," U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said during an interview with CNBC Thursday, adding that he expects Chinese interlocuters will be working behind the scenes to bring this about. Chinese Supertanker Moves Through the Strait Ahead of Trump's talks with Xi on Wednesday, a Chinese supertanker, the Yuan Hua Hu, sailed through the strait with 2 million barrels of Iraqi oil in tow after being stranded in the Persian Gulf for two months due to the conflict, according to MarineTraffic shipping data reviewed by Newsweek. The passage of those vessels followed requests by China’s foreign minister and ambassador to Iran, according to Iran’s semi‑official Iranian media, citing a source familiar with the matter.