Key facts
- Xi told Oman's sultan the Middle East should not become an arena for great power rivalry, per a Chinese readout.
- Wang told Iran's Bagheri Kani that China supported Iran in safeguarding its sovereignty and security.
- China buys about 90% of Iran's crude oil exports, the report said, and cut crude imports by 30% between April and June.
- China's cut in Iranian crude imports shaved $30 or more off Brent crude prices, according to some estimates.
- A Pew Research Center report published in July found China viewed more favorably than the US in 36 countries surveyed.
- Trump has threatened to renew military action against Iran after Tuesday's US midterm elections.
China held a series of meetings with Gulf and Iranian officials in the days before November 3, 2026, ahead of a planned meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping at the APEC conference in Shenzhen on November 18 and 19. Xi met Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq in Beijing on Monday, the first visit by an Omani head of state since the two countries established diplomatic relations nearly 50 years ago.
According to a Chinese readout of the meeting, Xi warned that the Middle East should not become an arena for "great power rivalry and geopolitical conflicts." He said China has always been actively committed to stopping conflict and promoting peace and hopes to contribute wisdom and solutions to resolving the regional security dilemma.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Saudi Arabia's national security adviser Musaad bin Mohammed Al Aiban and Ali Bagheri Kani, deputy secretary of Iran's national security council. Wang said after his separate talks that China was willing to "play a constructive role in helping the region emerge from the shadow of the pandemic and achieve lasting peace and stability." In his meeting with Bagheri Kani, Wang said China supported Iran "in safeguarding its sovereignty and security." According to China, the Iranian official said his country looked forward to China "playing a more important role in international and regional peace."
When the US and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran in February, China was credited with pushing Tehran toward ceasefire talks in Pakistan, the report said. Beijing's influence in the Middle East is "no longer what it used to be," said Shen Dingli, a Shanghai-based scholar of international relations, adding that given China's increased investment and trade in the region its influence cannot be ignored.
China buys about 90% of Iran's crude oil exports, the report said. Between April and June, it cut crude imports by 30%, with the total in June falling to the lowest level in a decade. According to some estimates, China's cut in oil imports shaved $30 or more off barrel prices of Brent crude, a global benchmark.
In March, Wang said the war "should never have happened" and that the US and Israel would find "no popular support" for the strikes. According to findings published in July by the Pew Research Center, a Washington-based thinktank, China is now viewed more favorably than the US in a majority of 36 countries surveyed.
The report said the disruption to the Strait of Hormuz, through which much of the world's oil and gas flows, poses a risk to China's economy because energy shortages cause inflation that could reduce global demand for Chinese goods. Tehran and Washington are locked in intensive talks to reach an agreement that could include reopening the strait. Trump has repeatedly threatened to renew military action against Iran after Tuesday's midterm elections in the US.
China's foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Monday that China would send special envoy Zhai Jun to Iran, Oman and Saudi Arabia in early to mid-November.