Amid attacks on Iran by Israel and the US, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks by phone with China’s Wang Yi.
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Published March 3, 2026
Iran’s Foreign Minister briefed senior members of the Chinese Central Committee and his counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and promised to take all measures to ensure the safety of Chinese nationals in the country amid the war started by the United States and Israel.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi made the comments during a phone conversation with Wang on Monday, focusing on the situation in Iran as Tehran “defends itself at all costs,” Beijing’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
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“Seyyed Abbas Aragushi said that the Iranian side will do its best to guarantee the safety and security of Chinese personnel and institutions,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Araguchi told Wang that the United States had “launched a second war against Iran during ongoing negotiations” even though the two countries had made “positive progress in the latest round of negotiations.”
The United States and Israel launched a surprise attack on Iran on Saturday, shortly after Oman’s foreign minister, who brokered the final round of indirect talks between Washington and Tehran, said a peace deal was closer than ever.
“A peace deal is within our reach,” Badr al-Busaidi said in an interview with CBS News hours before launching the attack on Iran.
Araghchi told the Chinese side that Iran “had no choice but to defend itself,” adding that he hoped Beijing would play a role in preventing further escalation of the conflict in the region.
“China respects the traditional friendly relations between China and Iran, and supports Iran in safeguarding its sovereignty, security, territorial integrity and national dignity, and defending its lawful and lawful rights and interests,” Wang told Araghchi, the ministry said.
“China called on the United States and Israel to immediately suspend military operations to avoid further escalation of tensions and prevent the conflict from spreading and spreading throughout the Middle East region,” Wang said.
The phone call between the ministers came as China continues to maintain close ties with Iran and has previously worked to end Iran’s isolation on the world stage, including by admitting Iran to BRICS+ and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a bloc representing emerging and emerging economies that seek to counter Western-led regimes, London-based think tank Chatham House said.
Chatham House Associate Fellow Ahmed Abdu said the Chinese government and Tehran are comprehensive strategic partners and signed a 25-year strategic agreement in 2021.
Abdou added that amid overwhelming sanctions, “China remains the lifeblood of Iran’s economy.”
Abdou said in a recent briefing that more than 80% of Iran’s crude oil shipments in 2025 went to China, accounting for about 13.5% of China’s total oil imports by sea.
