As Pakistan gains focus for being the mediator between Iran and the US, a report has emerged stating that China made a rare diplomatic intervention during the conflict, nudging Tehran to agree to talks with Washington. While Beijing’s role was not decisive, Chinese President Xi Jinping appears to have gained valuable diplomatic capital with US President Donald Trump.
Most reports credit Pakistan, Turkey and Egypt for brokering the two-week truce, but Trump has specifically highlighted China’s role in bringing Iran to the table, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The White House said China and the US discussed ceasefire plans at the “top levels” of both governments, according to the report.
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26 phone calls by Chinese foreign minister
Chinese officials said Foreign Minister Wang Yi held 26 phone calls with counterparts to position Beijing as a mediator, and pointed to a plan proposed jointly by China and Pakistan on March 31 calling for a ceasefire and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the WSJ report added.
Administration officials said the plan offered a diplomatic off-ramp for Iran, which counts China as both a security partner and a major oil customer, the report added.
China’s diplomatic outreach extends beyond the Middle East, with Beijing pursuing a multi-front effort to demonstrate its value to Trump’s broader foreign policy goals ahead of the planned Trump-Xi meeting on May 14–15.
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‘I hear yes’: Trump on Beijing’s role in US-Iran war
Trump told AFP on Tuesday that he believed China had played a role in bringing Iran to negotiations.
“I hear yes,” Trump said in a telephone call when asked if Beijing was involved in getting Tehran to negotiate on a truce.
Trump is scheduled to visit Beijing in May for talks with Xi Jinping.
What is happening in the US-Iran ceasefire?
Negotiators from Iran and the United States were preparing on Friday for high-level talks set to begin a day later in Islamabad, aiming to stabilise a fragile ceasefire amid continued exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah, as well as tensions over Tehran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz.
US Vice President JD Vance was expected to depart from Washington, while Iran remained silent on its delegation as it sought to pressure the US to halt Israeli strikes in Lebanon.
The semi-official Tasnim news agency, which is close to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, said talks would “remain suspended” otherwise.
Meanwhile, Kuwait reported a drone attack on Thursday night that it blamed on Iran and its allied militias. Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard denied carrying out the attack, though it has previously conducted operations across the Middle East without claiming responsibility.
Also Read | US-Iran peace talks in Pakistan: Who is attending, who is skipping meeting in Islamabad
In parallel, Israel-Lebanon negotiations are expected to begin next week at the State Department in Washington – a potential boost to broader Middle East ceasefire efforts – according to a US official and a source familiar with the plans, both speaking on condition of anonymity.
This follows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying on Thursday that he has authorised direct negotiations with Lebanon “as soon as possible” aimed at disarming Iran-backed Hezbollah militants and establishing relations between the two neighbours.
