Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing on Wednesday, as tensions over the Strait of Hormuz persist and Washington prepares for a summit with Beijing next week. The meeting marks Araghchi's first in-person visit to China since the Iran-US war began on 28 February. Al Jazeera reported he had spoken with Wang by telephone at least three times since hostilities began. The visit comes one week before US President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on 14 and 15 May. Araghchi said Beijing remained a close friend of Tehran and

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing on Wednesday, as tensions over the Strait of Hormuz persist and Washington prepares for a summit with Beijing next week.

The meeting marks Araghchi's first in-person visit to China since the Iran-US war began on 28 February. Al Jazeera reported he had spoken with Wang by telephone at least three times since hostilities began. The visit comes one week before US President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on 14 and 15 May.

Araghchi said Beijing remained a close friend of Tehran and that bilateral cooperation would deepen under current circumstances. On the ongoing negotiations with Washington, he said Iran would only accept a fair and comprehensive agreement and was committed to protecting its legitimate rights and interests at the table.

Wang called for Iran and the United States to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as soon as possible, saying a complete cessation of fighting must be achieved without delay and that continued negotiations remain essential.

Iran effectively closed the strait, through which roughly one-fifth of global oil and gas supplies pass, after hostilities began, sharply pushing up fuel and fertilizer prices and prompting the IMF to warn that a prolonged closure could push global growth close to recession territory. Following a ceasefire in April, the United States imposed its own blockade on Iranian ports to press Tehran toward an agreement on Washington's terms.

Al Jazeera reported that Iran's key objectives in the meeting included reaffirming its position on the war, consolidating ties with China ahead of Trump's arrival, and securing continued economic and diplomatic support from Beijing.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking in Washington on Tuesday local time, called on Beijing to press Iran to lift its hold on the strait. The war has also strained US-China relations, with Washington sanctioning Chinese companies accused of purchasing Iranian oil, and Beijing in turn ordering its companies not to comply with the sanctions.

Separately, Trump announced a pause in a US military operation to escort stranded vessels out of the strait, citing what he described as significant progress toward a final agreement with Iranian representatives.

Talks between the two sides were last held in Islamabad on 11 and 12 April but ended without a deal, with key disputes remaining over US demands that Iran halt all nuclear enrichment and Tehran's insistence on retaining control over the Strait of Hormuz.

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