Wang Yi, China’s foreign minister, has stated China’s intention to play a positive role in the Middle East by encouraging Iran and Saudi Arabia to pursue their economic paths while also cooperating to address security concerns in the area. China hopes to give the good-neighborly relationship between Saudi Arabia and Iran a fresh boost and help promote peace and stability in the region; the first meeting of the trilateral joint committee between China, Saudi Arabia, and Iran took place in Beijing.
Wang put forward three recommendations for better ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia: sticking to the strategic choice of reconciliation, investigating potential areas of collaboration and exchange, and avoiding outside intervention. Iran and Saudi Arabia also reaffirmed the complete execution of the March Beijing Agreement.
Iran, China, and Saudi Arabia are worried about the state of affairs in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, seeing them as a danger to global and regional stability. Outspokenly opposed to the forcible displacement of Palestinians, they demanded an end to military operations in the Gaza Strip immediately and promised long-term aid to civilians.
In March, diplomatic ties between Tehran and Riyadh were restored when the Chinese Communist Party mediated discussions between Sunni and Shiite opponents. There has been an ongoing animosity between Saudi Arabia and Iran because of religious differences and because Iran is the leading state sponsor of terrorism in the world.
China has been seeking to raise its geopolitical profile in the Middle East to amplify its economic impact and bolster anti-American agendas. The Communist Party has openly backed the terrorist group Hamas since the October 7th massacre in Israel. Iranian and Saudi Deputy Foreign Ministers Ali Baqeri and Waleed Abdulkarim El Khereiji were welcomed by China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, to discuss cooperation and unity.
A “ceasefire” has been demanded by China ever since Israel declared war on Hamas on October 8 and the subsequent threat to protect Israeli civilians from a comparable attack.