Iran willing to exercise restraint, has no intention of escalating situation, Tehran tells Beijing

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held a phone conversation with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and discussed Tehran's first-ever attack on Israel's territory. A readout from Beijing's foreign ministry said that the message was delivered to Wang in a phone call on Monday.

Notably, China, which is a close partner of Iran and its largest trade partner, and a top buyer of its sanctioned oil, did not condemn Iranian drone and missile strikes on Saturday.

China's state media reported on Tuesday (Apr 16) that Iran said it was "willing to exercise restraint". Iranian foreign minister reportedly also said that it has no intention of further escalating the situation with Israel.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

"The current situation in the region is very sensitive, and the Iranian side is willing to exercise restraint and has no intention of further escalating the situation," Amir-Abdollahian said, according to the readout.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran advocates an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and supports China's positive efforts to promote a ceasefire, restore peace in the region and strengthen cooperation among regional countries," the statement added.

Meanwhile, Wang said that China "strongly condemns and firmly opposes the attack" on the Iranian consulate in Syria, which killed 16 people. He said it also regards it as a "serious violation of international law and unacceptable", Xinhua reported.

The readout said China noted Iran's statement that, in response, it had taken limited action in "self-defence".

"China appreciates Iran's stress on not targeting regional and neighbouring countries as well as its reiteration on continuously pursuing a good-neighbourly and friendly policy," Xinhua quoted Wang as saying.

"It is believed that Iran can handle the situation well and spare the region further turmoil while safeguarding its own sovereignty and dignity," Wang added.

Watch:Iran warns Israel & the US of 'severe response' in case of retaliation

The call comes amid repeated calls by the United States asking China to use its influence over Tehran to manage tensions in the West Asian region.

Scholz and Xi discussed Ukraine and Israeli-Palestinian conflicts

Meanwhile, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a bilateral meeting and discussed major global geopolitical issues, including the conflict in Ukraine and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The meeting was scheduled to take place at the Beijing Diaoyutai State Guesthouse as it marked the final day of Scholz's three-day visit to China.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a news conference that while discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, both leaders expressed concerns about the serious humanitarian situation and the danger of further escalation of violence in the region.

Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report conflicts in West Asia involvingIsrael, Iran, Syria, Iraq and non-state actors like Islamic State, among others. In this context, claims and counterclaims are being made online and offline. WION cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, social media posts, photos and videos.