Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi in Beijing on Wednesday, their first in-person talks since the U.S.-Israel war on Iran began, focusing on the fragile ceasefire and security in the Strait of Hormuz.
Araghchi’s visit comes just one week before U.S. President Donald Trump is due in Beijing for a summit with President Xi Jinping on 14 and 15 May, casting a long shadow over the meeting and injecting it with rare urgency. Analysts say the timing is no accident.
Two issues dominated the agenda: maintaining the ceasefire reached in April and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas once passed.
Since the war began on 28 February, Iran has effectively closed the strait, pushing fuel and fertiliser prices sharply higher and prompting fears of a global recession.
The closure has put Beijing in an uncomfortable position. China has been critical of the U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports, calling it dangerous, but has also grown increasingly critical of Iran’s decision to keep the strait shut.
China, the world’s largest buyer of Gulf oil and gas, has absorbed some of the shock through domestic stockpiles and a diversified energy mix, but the strain is mounting.
In Washington, Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on Beijing to press Iran to release its chokehold on the strait, describing U.S. efforts to reopen it as defensive and aimed at helping thousands of civilian sailors stranded in the Persian Gulf.
“At least 10 sailors have already died as a result,” Rubio said.
So far, the U.S.-guarded corridor has seen only minimal commercial traffic, with hundreds of vessels still bottled up in the region.
For Tehran, the Beijing visit carried its own set of anxieties. Araghchi was reportedly seeking clarity on what Beijing might put on the table when Xi meets Trump, and whether any concessions to Washington could come at Iran’s expense.
On nuclear talks, Araghchi said Iran would do its utmost to protect its legitimate rights and interests, and would only accept a fair and comprehensive agreement.
With Trump touching down in Beijing in just over a week, the stakes could hardly be higher.
How China chooses to balance its partnership with Iran against its fraught but consequential relationship with the United States may well determine whether the region edges towards stability - or a deeper crisis.
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Okinawa lost transport links and suffered widespread power outages on Monday (1 June) as Severe Tropical Storm Jangmi brought destructive winds and heavy rain to Japan's south-western islands.
Thai investigators seized more than 100 protected wildlife remains after raiding a souvenir and traditional medicine shop accused of selling wildlife carcasses online.
Japan has released crested ibises into the wild on Honshu for the first time, marking a major conservation milestone in the Noto region of Ishikawa Prefecture.
The United States has moved to close a regulatory gap that may have allowed advanced AI chips to reach Chinese-linked firms overseas despite export restrictions.
U.S. rapper Kanye West, now known as Ye, performed to a crowd of 118,000 people in Istanbul on Saturday night, marking his first concert in Europe in more than a decade, despite being barred from performing in several countries over past antisemitic remarks.
Iranian-made Yassin missiles were spotted mounted on Armenian Air Force fighter aircraft during Armenia's latest military parade on Thursday (28 May), drawing attention from defence observers and regional analysts.
The Philippines remains under a "severe threat" from China despite recent efforts by Washington and Beijing to ease tensions, Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said on Saturday (30 May).
Russia has recalled its ambassador to Armenia for consultations, citing Yerevan's growing rapprochement with the European Union. The move is seen as the latest sign of deteriorating relations between the longtime allies ahead of Armenia's parliamentary election on 7 June.
Donald Trump said he is “in no hurry” to reach a deal with Iran, insisting the U.S. is slowly getting what it wants. He warned military action remains an option if talks fail. Meanwhile, U.S. forces said they fired a missile at a vessel trying to breach Washington’s blockade of Iran.
Okinawa lost transport links and suffered widespread power outages on Monday (1 June) as Severe Tropical Storm Jangmi brought destructive winds and heavy rain to Japan's south-western islands.
Japan has released crested ibises into the wild on Honshu for the first time, marking a major conservation milestone in the Noto region of Ishikawa Prefecture.
Ukrainian drones struck targets across several Russian regions overnight, including an oil pipeline pumping station, a refinery and a fuel depot, Russian and Ukrainian authorities said on Sunday.
Start your day informed with the AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top stories for 1 June, covering the latest developments you need to know.
The United States has moved to close a regulatory gap that may have allowed advanced AI chips to reach Chinese-linked firms overseas despite export restrictions.
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