Mapping Chinese Mediation: A New Tool + Wang Yi talks Middle East
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I am excited to roll out my new "China Global Mediation Tracker” tool I have been working on for the few weeks.
This tool is the first in a series I am making through my Rihla ATLAS initiative. In short, it maps China’s growing role in international conflict mediation over the past two decades and aims to provide both a qualitative and quantitative picture of Beijing’s mediation efforts.
As China’s global footprint and foreign interests have expanded, so too has its exposure to conflicts, geopolitical rivalries, and civil war. This is prompting a more active, deliberate engagement in conflict mediation. From discreet shuttle diplomacy to headline-making breakthroughs, China has positioned itself as a mediator, especially for countries across the Global South.
This tools aim to capture this evolution by documenting China’s mediation activities and spotlighting Beijing’s institutionalization of its approach through new platforms like the International Organization for Mediation (IOMed).
The platform will be updated regularly, and I am working to make the data more presentable long term.
Feel free to explore and offer feedback.
Wang Yi talks Middle East
Last week, Chinese FM Wang Yi met with his french counterpart and took questions from journalists following their meeting.
He had three core messages:
China does not support Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon, but does respect Iran's right to peaceful use of nuclear energy as a signatory to NPT.
War will not solve the nuclear issue, but instead threatens the outbreak of a broader nuclear war. Parties to the conflict should have resorted to dialogue, not the use of force.
The root issue for the Middle East remains resolving the Palestinian issue
My comments:
The most interesting takeaways from this for me are twofold: First, Wang Yi underscores this was a missed chance for dialogue. I argued similarly with
a few days before his speech (maybe he is a dedicated reader of and ). He goes at length to draw a distinction between the West’s “peace through strength” approach, and what China is increasingly framing as a “peace through concencus” approach. Wang Yi knows his audience.When he speaks on these terms, it is not for western journalists or French diplomats, it is for the Middle East and global south audiences who are watching carefully how China maneuvers the Iran crisis and what messages it sends to those shocked by the Israel-Iran escalation. Iran has offered Beijing a unique high-visibility opportunity to define its image in contrast to the U.S. - as if to say, “look, we are not interventionist”. The message is generally well-received among public audiences in the Middle East (especially ending with the emphasis on Palestine), but elites in the Middle East are more skeptical.
This brings me to the second takwaway: China’s emphasis on dialogue and concensus did not deliver any results on Iran, nor did it really try. This is a key point. Beijing did its general shuttle diplomacy between Israel and Iran, but this was largely focused on coordinating to evacuate Chinese nationals. This was an inherintly interest-driven approach.
Any attempt by China to play a “constructive role” in regional peace never materialized in a meaningful way, for two main reasons. First, Beijing had no real leverage to bring either Israel or Iran to the table, especially while the United States was backing Israel and threatening to escalate. As one Chinese colleague put it (paraphrased): “This is America’s crisis to solve.” China recognized the limits of what it could realistically achieve and sought to avoid getting drawn into the conflict.
Second, China would not use force, nor put itself in any position to be accused of using force to shape the outcome of the conflict in favor of Iran. It was actively balancing its relationship with Israel (which has seen some improvement in the last two months) and with Iran (which a Chinese scholar told me has deteriorated since Iran attempted face-to-face meetings with the U.S. earlier this year). Chinese officials would not be seen as providing Iran any capability which could be used against Israel or the GCC countries. Even when Iran visited China for meetings with the Russian and Chinese defense trilat, China’s messaging was very careful. Yet, somehow, Beijing faced accusations just a few weeks later of restocking Iran’s missile defense capabililites, which Beijing denied.
Full translation below:
On July 4, 2025 local time, Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister, met with reporters together with French Foreign Minister Barro in Paris and answered questions on the spot.
In response to a reporter's question about China's views on the Iranian nuclear issue and the current situation in the Middle East, Wang Yi said that the Iranian nuclear issue could have been a model for resolving international disputes through dialogue and consultation, but it is now triggering a new round of crisis in the Middle East. Although the world has heard the knock on the door of peace, it ultimately failed to open the door to peace. China deeply regrets this and the lessons need to be deeply reflected upon.
Wang Yi said that China's position on the Iranian nuclear issue is clear and consistent. We attach importance to the repeated public commitments made by Iran's supreme leader that Iran will not develop nuclear weapons, and at the same time respect Iran's right to peaceful use of nuclear energy as a signatory to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. On this basis, the parties concerned can speed up the negotiation of a new international agreement to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue and place Iran's nuclear activities completely under the strict supervision and protection of the International Atomic Energy Agency. I would like to emphasize that the road to peace is right under our feet, and history will test the sincerity of all parties.
Wang Yi said that the recent military conflict between Israel and Iran should not be repeated. War cannot solve the Iranian nuclear issue. Preemptive strikes obviously lack legitimacy. Indiscriminate use of force will only lead to greater conflicts and accumulate more hatred. The United States has set a bad precedent by brazenly bombing a sovereign country's nuclear facilities. If a nuclear disaster is triggered, the whole world will pay for it. The so-called "strength first, then peace" is the logic of power. If right and wrong are judged only by strength, where are the rules? Where is the axiom? Strength cannot bring real peace and may very likely open Pandora's box. How should countries that lack strength, especially small and medium-sized countries, deal with themselves? Can they only be served on the table and slaughtered at will?
Wang Yi stressed that the real solution to the Iranian nuclear issue cannot avoid the core of the Middle East issue, that is, the Palestinian issue. The humanitarian disaster in Gaza should not continue, the Palestinian issue should not be marginalized again, the legitimate demands of the Arab nation should be fulfilled as soon as possible, and the just voice of the vast Islamic world must be taken seriously. The "two-state solution" is the only realistic way out of the chaos in the Middle East, and the international community should take more practical and effective actions to this end.
Wang Yi said that China and France are both permanent members of the UN Security Council and should uphold justice, take responsibility, support resolving conflicts through dialogue and negotiation, oppose any double standards, and decide their positions and policies based on the right and wrong of the matter. The UN and its Security Council should play their due role in peace. China is willing to work with France to make unremitting efforts to this end.