FM says intl community should push for dialogue

Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Thursday that the international community should encourage the United States and Iran to return to negotiations, as he held a phone call with Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand over the current situation in the Middle East.

Wang, who is also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said both Washington and Tehran have shown willingness to resume talks, adding that China and Canada can play a constructive role in helping the two sides return to the negotiating table and seek a political settlement.

He stressed that the Iranian nuclear issue should be resolved through dialogue and should not become a pretext for the use of force. The abuse of force, he said, will only lead to serious repercussions, while any spillover of the conflict would threaten regional security and stability.

Anand said the Iranian nuclear issue concerns the international nuclear nonproliferation regime, and that ensuring safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz serves the common interests of all parties.

She said Canada is committed to protecting civilians, promoting de-escalation, preventing the conflict from spreading, and reducing its impact on the global economy and industrial and supply chains.

Canada is willing to work with China to promote peace talks, help end the fighting, and push for peace and stability in the region, she added.

Wang also warned on Thursday that the fighting in the Middle East is continuing to spread and escalate, stressing in particular that any attack on nuclear facilities could have incalculable consequences.

He made the remarks in Beijing during a meeting with Rafael Mariano Grossi, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, who started a three-day visit to China on Wednesday.

Saying that only an immediate ceasefire and a return to dialogue and negotiations can address the root causes of the conflict, Wang cautioned against allowing the Middle East to slide into a new spiral of confrontation, which would further undermine regional stability and world peace. He said that when some countries trample on rules in the name of strength, replace cooperation with bullying, and weaken the international system centered around the United Nations, the world faces the real risk of returning to the "law of the jungle".

Wang emphasized that China will firmly uphold and practice multilateralism, safeguard the authority and standing of the UN Charter, and work to reinvigorate and strengthen the UN, while promoting a more just and equitable global governance system.

Grossi said the IAEA is willing to deepen communication and coordination with China on hotspot issues and the peaceful use of nuclear energy, while jointly safeguarding the international nuclear nonproliferation regime and maintaining world peace and stability.

Grossi's trip comes at a particularly sensitive moment, against the backdrop of escalating tensions in the Middle East and growing international concern over the safety of Iran's nuclear facilities. Iran's Atomic Energy Organization said on Saturday that the United States and Israel had once again attacked Natanz, the country's main uranium enrichment facility.

Rong Ying, a chair professor at Sichuan University, said that Grossi's visit could be seen as an effort to gain the support of China, a permanent member of the UN Security Council and a major nuclear power, in upholding the international nuclear nonproliferation regime and creating room for a political settlement of the Iranian nuclear issue.

He said US unilateralism has weakened the UN's coordinating role, making China's firm support for the UN-centered international system all the more valuable.

In another development, Zhai Jun, China's special envoy on the Middle East issue, met with Russian Ambassador to China Igor Morgulov on Thursday, with both sides stressing the need for an early ceasefire.