Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi ​met China’s top diplomat in Beijing on Wednesday, underscoring close ties between the two countries shortly before ‌U.S. President Donald Trump is scheduled to travel to meet with Xi Jinping, Reuters reported.

Araqchi’s visit, announced by state news agency Xinhua, is his first trip to China since the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran set off the most severe global oil supply shock in history and undermined the energy security ​of China, the world’s top crude importer.

Earlier this week, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urged China to intensify its ​diplomatic efforts to persuade Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping.

Bessent said Trump ⁠and Xi would exchange views on Iran in person during their May 14 to 15 talks in Beijing. But he ​emphasized the two will seek to keep the steady U.S.-China relationship on track following a trade truce in October.

He urged China to “join ​us in this international operation” to open the strait, but did not specify what actions Beijing should take. He added that China and Russia should stop blocking initiatives at the United Nations, including a resolution encouraging steps to protect commercial shipping in the strait.

Earlier this week, the ​U.S. and Iran launched new attacks in the Gulf as they wrestled for control over the strait with duelling maritime blockades, threatening ​what was already a fragile truce.

Trump later said the U.S. Navy would help ships pass through the strait. But that operation was paused ‌after Trump ⁠on Tuesday said there had been “great progress” made toward a comprehensive agreement with Iran.

There was no immediate reaction from Tehran, read the report.

The Iranian foreign minister on Monday said the attacks, taking place after he said Tehran was looking into Trump’s request for negotiations, showed there was no military solution to the crisis.

China has engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity and refrained from forceful criticism of the ​U.S.’ conduct of the war ​so that the summit, ⁠already postponed once by the conflict, can go smoothly, analysts have told Reuters.

China has repeatedly urged the U.S. and Iran to maintain the ceasefire and lift the restrictions in the strait. Trump has ​also credited Beijing with helping to get Iran to attend last month’s peace talks in ​Pakistan.

Last week, China ⁠escalated its opposition to U.S. sanctions against Chinese oil refineries over purchases of Iranian crude. Its Ministry of Commerce ordered companies not to comply with U.S. sanctions against five independent refiners, including the recently designated Hengli Petrochemical, invoking for the first time a law that ⁠allows ​Beijing to retaliate against entities enforcing sanctions that it deems unlawful, Reuters reported.

China buys more ​than 80% of Iran’s shipped oil, data for 2025 from analytics firm Kpler showed. Iranian oil has had limited buyers due to U.S. sanctions that are aimed ​at cutting off funding to Tehran’s nuclear programme.

US President Donald Trump has announced that the United States will begin an operation to help vessels trapped in the Strait of Hormuz, as tensions linked to the ongoing conflict with Iran continue to disrupt global shipping.

In a statement posted on Truth Social, Trump said Washington would work to guide ships safely out of restricted waters, where hundreds of vessels and thousands of crew members have been unable to pass for weeks. Many are reportedly running low on essential supplies.

The move comes amid escalating security concerns in the region. A tanker recently reported being struck by unidentified projectiles while transiting the strait, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations. All crew were said to be safe, though details of the incident remain limited.

The U.S. military’s United States Central Command (CENTCOM) said it would support the effort with a significant deployment of personnel, aircraft, warships and drones. Officials described the mission as critical to protecting both regional stability and the global economy, while maintaining pressure on Iran through an ongoing naval blockade.

The Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global energy supplies, has seen severe disruption over the past two months. Iran has effectively restricted most shipping traffic, except for its own vessels, in response to the broader conflict. Several ships have reportedly come under fire or been seized, while the U.S. has imposed its own countermeasures targeting Iranian-linked shipping.

Washington has been seeking international backing for a broader coalition to secure maritime routes, though it remains unclear which countries will participate in the latest operation or how it will be implemented.

Trump warned that any interference with the mission would be met with forceful action.

Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts remain uncertain. Iranian officials confirmed they are reviewing a U.S. response to a proposed framework for peace talks, which was reportedly conveyed via Pakistan. However, Tehran signaled that nuclear negotiations are currently off the table, suggesting they may only resume once the conflict ends and maritime blockades are lifted.

The standoff has already had global economic repercussions, with oil prices rising sharply amid fears over supply disruptions. The waterway is responsible for transporting roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and gas, making its stability a key concern for international markets.

Despite a pause in direct military strikes in recent weeks, attempts to restart formal negotiations between Washington and Tehran have yet to gain traction, leaving both the security situation and diplomatic outlook uncertain.

Iran said on Sunday it had received a U.S. response to its latest offer for peace talks, a day after President Donald Trump said he ​would probably reject the Iranian proposal because “they have not paid a big enough price”.

Iranian state media reported that Washington had conveyed its response to Iran’s 14-point proposal via Pakistan, ‌and that Tehran was now reviewing it. There was no immediate confirmation from Washington or Islamabad of the U.S. response, Reuters reported.

“At this stage, we do not have nuclear negotiations,” state media quoted Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei as saying, an apparent reference to Iran’s proposal to set aside talks on nuclear issues until after the war ends and the foes agree to lift opposing blockades of Gulf shipping.

On Saturday, Trump said that he had yet to review the exact wording of the Iranian peace proposal, ​but that he was likely to reject it.

“I will soon be reviewing the plan that Iran has just sent to us, but can’t imagine that it would be acceptable in that they ​have not yet paid a big enough price for what they have done to Humanity, and the World, over the last 47 years,” he wrote on social ⁠media.

STRAIT STILL SHUT

The United States and Israel suspended their bombing campaign against Iran four weeks ago, and U.S. and Iranian officials held one round of talks. But attempts to set up further meetings have so far ​failed.

Iran handed over its latest proposal on Thursday, and a senior Iranian official confirmed on Saturday that Tehran envisions ending the war and resolving the shipping standoff first, while leaving talks on Iran’s nuclear programme for later.

Though Trump ​initially said on Friday that he was not satisfied with the Iranian proposal, he said on Saturday he was still looking at it.

“They told me about the concept of the deal. They’re going to give me the exact wording now,” he told reporters. Asked if he might restart strikes on Iran, Trump replied: “I don’t want to say that. I mean, I can’t tell that to a reporter. If they misbehave, if they do something bad, right now we’ll see. But it’s a ​possibility that could happen.”

IRAN’S PROPOSAL VS WASHINGTON’S DEMANDS

The proposal to delay talks on nuclear issues until a later phase would appear at odds with Washington’s repeated demand that Iran accept stringent restrictions on its nuclear programme ​before the war can end.

Washington wants Tehran to give up its stockpile of more than 400 kg (900 pounds) of highly enriched uranium, which the United States says could be used to make a bomb. Iran says its nuclear programme ‌is peaceful, though ⁠it is willing to discuss some curbs in return for the lifting of sanctions, as it had accepted in a 2015 deal that Trump abandoned.

While saying repeatedly he is in no hurry, Trump is under domestic pressure to break Iran’s hold on the Strait of Hormuz, which has choked off 20% of the world’s oil and gas supplies and pushed up U.S. gasoline prices. Trump’s Republican Party faces the risk of a voter backlash over higher prices in midterm congressional elections in November.

Iranian media said Tehran’s 14-point proposal includes withdrawing U.S. forces from nearby areas, lifting the blockade, releasing frozen assets, paying compensation, lifting sanctions, ending the war on all ​fronts including Lebanon and creating a new control ​mechanism for the strait.

Iran has been blocking nearly ⁠all shipping from the Gulf apart from its own for more than two months. Last month, the U.S. imposed its own blockade of ships from Iranian ports.

Speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential diplomacy, the senior Iranian official said Tehran believed its latest proposal to shelve nuclear talks for a later stage was a ​significant shift aimed at facilitating an agreement.

“Under this framework, negotiations over the more complicated nuclear issue have been moved to the final stage to create ​a more conducive atmosphere,” the ⁠official said.

ISRAEL ORDERS LEBANON EVACUATIONS

On Sunday, Israel ordered thousands of Lebanese to leave villages in southern Lebanon, an escalation of a war between Israel and Iran’s Hezbollah allies there that has run in parallel to the Iran war and could further complicate wider peace efforts.

Iran has said talks with Washington cannot resume unless a ceasefire also holds in Lebanon, which Israel invaded in March to attack Hezbollah after the Iranian-backed Lebanese group fired across the border in support ⁠of Tehran.

Lebanon and ​Israel agreed a separate truce last month, but fighting has continued, though on a smaller scale. The Israeli military issued an ​urgent warning on Sunday to residents of 11 towns and villages in Lebanon’s south, urging them to evacuate their homes and move at least 1,000 metres (3,300 feet) away to open areas.

The military said it was conducting operations against Hezbollah following what it described as ​a violation of the ceasefire, warning that anyone near Hezbollah fighters or facilities could be at risk.