File Photo: Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning. AP
The United States and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire Tuesday barely an hour before President Donald Trump's deadline to obliterate the rival country was set to expire, with Tehran to temporarily reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz.
Trump told AFP on Tuesday he believed China, which has sought to mediate in the conflict since its outbreak, had a hand in bringing Iran to the negotiating table.
"China welcomes relevant parties announcing the reaching of a ceasefire agreement," foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told a regular news conference on Wednesday, without addressing Trump's comments directly.
"We have repeatedly introduced the efforts made by China," she said, noting that Foreign Minister Wang Yi had held 26 calls with counterparts from relevant countries while Beijing's Middle East envoy had "shuttled across" the war-torn region.
Beijing would "continue to make efforts to ease the situation and achieve a complete end to the war".
Under the ceasefire, the United States will suspend attacks on Iran for two weeks, while Tehran in turn temporarily reopens the Strait of Hormuz, according to Washington.
Meanwhile, Iran has proposed a 10-point plan for securing an end to the war, which Trump said was "workable".
China and Pakistan agreed days earlier to promote a five-point proposal aimed at restoring peace in the Middle East after a monthlong war.
The five points they said they would pursue included an immediate cessation of hostilities, the start of peace talks as soon as possible, ensuring the safety of nonmilitary targets, guaranteeing navigation safety through the Strait of Hormuz and safeguarding the primacy of the U.N. Charter.
China had considered the US and Israeli military actions against Iran as a "violation of international law", maintaining that those attacks were the "root cause" of the Strait of Hormuz blockage.
This story was edited by Ahram Online.
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