Chinese Representative: The Security Council Must Not Send Wrong Signals Amidst the Possibility of Escalation in Conflict

On April 7, Xinhua News Agency reported from the United Nations that China's Permanent Representative to the UN, Fu Cong, stated in an explanatory speech after the Security Council's vote on the draft resolution concerning the Strait of Hormuz that, in the context of a war imposed on Iran that is highly likely to escalate further, the passage of the draft resolution would send an extremely erroneous signal and lead to extremely serious consequences.

Fu Cong said that the conflict in Iran has been prolonged for over a month, with its spillover effects continuing to spread, causing severe impacts on regional and global peace and stability, and increasingly broad disruptions to global economic development, which do not align with the common interests of regional countries and the international community. The rights and wrongs of this conflict are very clear; the United States and Israel, without authorization from the Security Council, have launched military attacks on Iran while negotiations between the U.S. and Iran are ongoing, which clearly violates the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and the basic norms of international relations.

Fu Cong stated that under the current circumstances, this draft resolution should clarify the root causes of the conflict, seek correct solutions to these root causes and ensure the safety of navigation, and strive for peace and dialogue. Unfortunately, the draft resolution fails to comprehensively and balancedly reflect the root causes and the full picture of the conflict; the unilateral condemnation, pressure, characterization as a threat to international peace and security, and the content regarding military escort are easily misinterpreted or even abused. The actions of the Security Council should focus on de-escalating tensions, rather than providing a legal veneer for unauthorized military actions, granting a pass for the use of force, or further exacerbating contradictions and adding fuel to the fire, leading to an escalation of the conflict. The Security Council should not hastily vote on a draft resolution that still raises serious concerns among all parties. In light of the above, China had no choice but to cast a negative vote on the draft resolution.

Fu Cong emphasized that this is a war that should never have happened, and its continuation will bring endless harm. Currently, the situation in the Middle East is still deteriorating, and the conflict is escalating. The fundamental solution to the navigation issue in the Strait of Hormuz is to cease fire and stop the war as soon as possible. The United States and Israel are the instigators of this conflict, and the fundamental reason for the obstruction of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz is the illegal military actions of the United States and Israel against Iran. China strongly calls on the United States and Israel to immediately stop their illegal acts of war against Iran. At the same time, China urges Iran to cease attacks on facilities related to Gulf countries, to take into account the legitimate concerns of Gulf countries, to focus on the common interests of the Global South, and to take corresponding positive measures to restore normal navigation in the Strait of Hormuz as soon as possible.

Fu Cong pointed out that recently, China has made tremendous efforts to restore peace and stability in the Gulf and Middle East regions. China and Pakistan jointly issued a five-point initiative on restoring peace and stability in the Gulf and Middle East regions. The China-Pakistan five-point initiative is open and welcomes responses and participation from all countries and international organizations. Considering the needs of all parties to resolve related issues, Russia, together with China, has proposed a draft resolution to the Security Council. This draft is objective and fair, aims to ease tensions, calls for dialogue and negotiation, and maintains navigation rights and freedoms, hoping to gain support from Security Council members. China is willing to work with all parties to make greater contributions to the early restoration of peace and stability in the region.