BEIJING/HONG KONG, Apr 17 — China is accelerating its efforts to help end the Iran war, walking a diplomatic tightrope as it prepares for a summit next month with US President Donald Trump while trying not to alienate Tehran.
President Xi Jinping’s mid-May meeting with Trump is shaping Beijing’s approach to the West Asia conflict, even as the world’s largest crude oil importer, reliant on the region for about half its oil supply, seeks to safeguard its energy security, analysts say.
China’s measured approach to the war has preserved enough back-channel leverage for Trump to credit Beijing with helping bring Iran to last weekend’s peace talks in Pakistan.
Flurry of West Asia diplomacy
“You’ve heard President Trump repeatedly mention how the Chinese talked to the Iranians,” said Eric Olander, editor-in-chief of the China-Global South Project, an independent organisation that analyses China’s engagement in the developing world. “That puts them in the room with negotiators, even if it’s not a seat at the table.”
Considering Trump transactional and susceptible to flattery, China is seeking to advance its goals on trade and its claims on Taiwan at the summit, people familiar with China’s thinking told Reuters.
The dominant view in Beijing is to “butter him up, give him a red-carpet welcome and preserve strategic stability”, one person said.
China’s Foreign Ministry did not respond to questions about its diplomacy ahead of the summit, the first visit by a US president in eight years. Trump says it will take place on May 14 and 15.
With the US naval blockade of Iranian ports seen as a growing threat, China has engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity and refrained from strong criticism of Trump’s conduct of the war so the summit, postponed once by the conflict, can proceed smoothly, analysts say.
Xi broke his silence on the crisis on Tuesday with a four-point peace plan calling for peaceful coexistence, respect for sovereignty, adherence to international law and balancing development and security.
After Trump warned Iran that “the entire country can be taken out in one night”, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning avoided condemnation, saying only that China was “deeply concerned” and urging all sides to play a “constructive role in de-escalating the situation”.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi has held nearly 30 calls and meetings with counterparts seeking a ceasefire, according to a Reuters tally, while special envoy Zhai Jun has visited five Gulf and Arab capitals.
Travelling at one point by road to avoid contested airspace, Zhai said he could hear air-raid sirens.
Xi announced his peace plan during a meeting with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as he sought to deepen ties with a regional rival to Iran while encouraging Tehran towards dialogue.
Narrow focus for Trump-Xi summit
China’s “sense of urgency and the mode of intervention at the tactical level are shifting” as the war, which the US and Israel launched on February 28, drags on, said Cui Shoujun, a professor of international affairs at Renmin University.
Still, some analysts say Iran needs China more than China needs Iran, allowing Beijing to push for a ceasefire while protecting the summit with Trump.
“Beijing’s ideal outcome,” said Drew Thompson, a senior fellow at Singapore’s S Rajaratnam School of International Studies, “is maintaining no-strings-attached relationships with anti-Western countries like Iran while preserving its ability to reach some form of modus vivendi with the US”.
While China played a role in bringing Iran to talks with the US, its ability to shape outcomes remains limited due to a lack of military presence in West Asia.
Some observers say China’s diplomatic push is more performance than power.
“While the Iranians are keen to highlight their relationship with China and have asked Beijing to serve as a guarantor of a ceasefire, Beijing has shown zero interest in assuming such a role,” said Patricia Kim of the Brookings Institution. “Beijing appears content to remain on the sidelines as the United States bears the brunt of the pressure.”
The meeting is expected to be narrowly focused, analysts say, avoiding broader issues such as AI governance, market access and manufacturing overcapacity.
“There is zero chance China will reach some sort of grand bargain with the United States,” said Scott Kennedy, trustee chair in Chinese business and economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
