China and Iran call for ‘durable ceasefire’ in Gaza at Brics security conference

China’s top diplomat Wang Yi meets Russia’s Vladimir Putin and national security chiefs of Iran and India on sidelines of forum

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Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (fourth from right) holds talks with Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Ahmadian (third from left) on Thursday in St Petersburg, Russia. Photo: Handout via Xinhua

Published: 4:58pm, 13 Sep 2024Updated: 7:31pm, 13 Sep 2024

China and Iran jointly called for a “durable ceasefire” in Gaza and resumption of talks for a “two-state” solution on the sidelines of the Brics security conference in Russia.

In a Thursday meeting in St Petersburg, China’s top diplomat Wang Yi and Iranian Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Ahmadian discussed the situation in Gaza as tensions between Iran and Israel escalated.

According to a Chinese foreign ministry readout, Wang and Ahmadian both called for “a full withdrawal of troops” from Gaza and Palestinian sovereignty and self-governance.

China advocates a “two-state” solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Iran, which has long denied Israel’s legitimacy as a state, has shown some signs of a shift in its policy, including voting in favour of a UN resolution on a humanitarian truce in Gaza last year, which also called for a two-state solution.

Iran promised revenge on Israel after Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Iran in July.

Conflicts between Israel and Hezbollah, which is widely believed to be an Iran proxy, have also grown in southern Lebanon, with multiple Hezbollah commanders killed by Israeli strikes in recent months.