Beijing urges permanent ceasefire and reopening of Hormuz Strait

Beijing issued a formal call on Friday for a permanent ceasefire in the Middle East and the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a position announced during the summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump. The statement from China's Foreign Ministry declared there is "no justification for the continuation of this war, which should never have started in the first place."

The vital waterway, through which a significant portion of global energy supplies transits, has been closed since the start of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran on February 28. Tehran has restricted navigation there since that date, while the United States has imposed a blockade on Iranian ports, all despite a ceasefire riddled with violations that has been in effect since April 8.

"Maritime passages must be reopened as soon as possible in response to the calls of the international community," the Chinese statement read. "A comprehensive and permanent ceasefire must be established as quickly as possible to facilitate the restoration of peace and stability in the Middle East and the Gulf region." The Foreign Ministry clarified that the statement was an official response to a journalist's question about whether the two presidents had specifically discussed Iran during their talks.

Summit discussions and a naval development

Xi and Trump discussed the situation in the Middle East during the first round of their talks on Thursday. In an interview with Fox News the same day, Trump said his Chinese counterpart had offered assistance in reopening the Strait of Hormuz and pledged not to send military equipment to aid Iran in its war with the United States and Israel.

In a development concurrent with the Beijing summit, Iran's Revolutionary Guard announced on Thursday that its naval forces had allowed Chinese ships to transit the strategic Strait of Hormuz since Wednesday evening, based on coordination between Beijing and Tehran.