CHINA PERSPECTIVE

Beijing, May 28, 2026. As Iranian missiles and drones hit Kuwait on the night of May 27-28 — in response to US strikes against a base in Bandar Abbas — China chose the diplomatic and UN register to respond to the escalation. Wang Yi, China's foreign minister and representative to the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council for May, spoke from New York without ever mentioning Washington. 'The objectives of the UN Charter have been trampled, the fundamental norms of international relations have been undermined, and global peace and security are in great peril,' he declared at the UN. He also expressed hope that the US and Iran could 'meet in the middle' so that peace returns to the Middle East.

This measured formulation contrasts with Washington's posture: Donald Trump not only rejected any agreement on the Strait of Hormuz, but seemed to threaten to 'blow up' Oman if the emirate aligned with Tehran. 'Oman will behave properly or we will have to blow them up,' the US president said at a cabinet meeting — remarks that the State Department later relayed without correction. For Beijing, this rhetoric illustrates precisely the type of unilateralism that Wang Yi has condemned for months at the UN podium.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which concentrated about one-fifth of the world's traded oil and natural gas, fuels an energy shortage that experts warn will intensify in the coming weeks. Brent crude surged 3.75% after the new strikes. The Iranian economy, already battered, seeks relief from sanctions and the unfreezing of frozen assets, while Washington demands the abandonment of highly enriched uranium stockpiles. The partial restoration of internet in Iran — connectivity rose to 35% after 88 days of near-total blackout according to the monitoring group NetBlocks — is seen as a signal of diplomatic openness from Tehran that Beijing aims to encourage.

China, which chairs the UN Security Council this month, positions itself as the natural arbiter of this crisis. However, its real influence remains limited: neither Washington nor Tehran has responded to its calls for de-escalation since the conflict began in February. The widening geographic scope of the conflict to Kuwait — a Gulf partner — and the 3.75% surge in Brent crude remind that Beijing pays economically for a crisis it cannot politically resolve.