Beijing and Islamabad call for de-escalation and renewed dialogue amid escalating conflict and Strait of Hormuz tensions.
SHANGHAI: China and Pakistan’s foreign ministers called Friday for the United States and Iran to stop fighting and resume negotiations, according to a statement following a meeting in Shanghai.
China’s Wang Yi and Pakistan’s Ishaq Dar jointly “expressed concern over the deterioration of the current situation, calling on the involved parties to immediately cease hostilities… (and) return to dialogue”, the statement by China’s foreign ministry said.
Both countries have sought to mediate in the months-long Middle East conflict, which rekindled with renewed fighting over the Strait of Hormuz a month after the signing of a preliminary deal aiming to end the war.
That agreement was “hard-won”, Wang said.
“Peace is before our eyes, (we) cannot fall at the last hurdle and even more so cannot lose what we have gained,” he added.
The United States and Iran exchanged strikes again on Friday, with Tehran accusing Washington of striking civilian sites — including an airport, railway station and two bridges.
In response to those attacks, Iran said it launched a barrage of drone strikes against US military allies and infrastructure in Kuwait.
The Strait of Hormuz was briefly reopened after the US-Iran deal in June, but Tehran said last week it would be closed again “until the US ends its aggression”.
The United States has also reimposed a blockade of Iran’s ports.
