China's foreign minister, Wang Yi, said on Sunday the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran "should not have happened" and "does no one any good."
But while Wang criticized the U.S. over the Iran war, he also offered a positive signal that an expected meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping might still go ahead at the end of this month.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an annual political meeting in Beijing, Wang did not confirm a meeting date but said China is open to dialogue with the United States.
He said the world cannot afford for the two biggest economies to engage in conflict.
Here is a summary of what Wang said on five key international issues.
1. Iran war
China wants the fighting to stop and for all parties in the Iran war to return to the negotiating table.
"Might doesn't make right, and the world cannot revert to the law of the jungle," Wang said.
He said the U.S. and Israel should respect the sovereignty, security and territorial integrity of Iran and other countries in the Middle East.
China said it will send an envoy to the region for mediation.
However, the Chinese are not impartial.
China is more strategically aligned with Iran than it is with the U.S. and Israel. China buys large amounts of oil from Iran and elsewhere in the Middle East – which have been affected by the Iranian blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
2. Relations with the U.S. – and Europe
China says it wants "peaceful coexistence" and "win-win cooperation" with the United States.
"China and the U.S. are both big countries. Neither side can remodel the other, but we can choose how we want to engage," he said.
Chinese diplomats often stress that there should be mutual respect because there is a deep sense that the U.S. is out to suppress and contain China's inevitable rise.
At the same time Wang tried to allay fears in Europe that China's rise will come at the expense of their core industries.
Wang said Europe has an incorrect perception of China as a competitor and should instead be regarded as a "global partner."
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"We are glad to see European friends stepping out of the 'small attic' of protectionism and walking into the 'fitness club' of the Chinese market to build their strength and competitiveness," he said.
3. Tariffs
Wang implicitly criticized President Trump's global trade tariffs, as he said pursuing trade protectionism is "akin to locking oneself in a dark room."
"It may keep out wind and rain, but it also shuts out light and air," he said.
Unlike the U.S., China has said it is opening up its own markets to global players.
Starting May 1st, China said it will fully lift tariffs on all imports from most African countries so it can "help Africa access the enormous opportunities of the Chinese market," according to Wang.
However, he did not address the sluggishness in domestic demand, which was demonstrated earlier this week when China set its lowest economic growth target since the 1990s, aiming for between 4.5% and 5% this year.
4. Japan and Taiwan
China and Japan relations are currently particularly fraught, with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggesting last year Japan might get involved if China invades Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own territory.
Wang said it is up to Tokyo to decide what the future holds for China-Japan relations.
"Taiwan never was, is not, and will never be a country," Wang said. "Taiwan affairs are purely China's internal affairs."
He said Japan has no right to interfere in the Taiwan issue.
5. Gaza
Wang said that China supports a two-state solution for Palestine.
"Any other arrangements or new mechanisms must reinforce – rather than undermine the two-state solution," Wang said.
He welcomed international efforts to enable the ceasefire, but said much of the hard work lies ahead.
China was invited to join Trump's Board of Peace but it has not participated.
Copyright 2026 NPR
