War in Middle East ‘should never have happened’, says China’s top diplomat
CNA
At a press conference on Sunday (Mar 8), Wang Yi also renewed China’s call for an immediate ceasefire and said Beijing is ready to work with Middle Eastern countries to restore order in the region.
BEIJING: China's top diplomat condemned on Sunday (Mar 8) the war in the Middle East, saying it "should never have happened" and calling once again for an immediate end to hostilities.
Speaking in a wide-ranging press conference on the sidelines of China's Two Sessions, Wang Yi described how the region was currently "engulfed in flames".
"This is a war that should never have happened - and it is a war that benefits no party," said Wang, who is China’s foreign minister and the country’s top diplomat by virtue of his concurrent role as head of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party.
The conflict erupted on Feb 28 when the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran. Tehran has retaliated with missile and drone strikes on Israel and US interests in nearby countries, mainly in the Gulf.
Trump said the US strikes had "totally demolished" most of Kharg Island and warned that more could follow, adding: "We may hit it a few more times just for fun."
In this first part of a series on electric vehicles in Asia, CNA examines how one of Southeast Asia’s largest untapped copper deposits in Mindanao could boost the Philippines’ role in the global EV supply chain.
BAGHDAD: Israel said the war against Iran was entering its "decisive phase" on Saturday (Mar 14), as explosions rocked cities across the Middle East, with strikes on the US embassy in Baghdad and a major Emirati energy facility.Black smoke rose above Washington's embassy in Iraq, AFP journalists saw, the seco
TOKYO: The United States can provide "reliable" energy supplies to Asia-Pacific, US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said on Saturday (Mar 14), as the Middle East war cripples the region's oil and gas flow.
The oil will be released in the form of loans that companies will return with extra barrels as a premium, the US Energy Department said.
SHANGHAI: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Afghan counterpart Amir Khan Muttaqi in a phone call that disputes between Afghanistan and Pakistan should be resolved through dialogue and consultation, not
SEOUL/TOKYO: North Korea fired a projectile towards the sea on Saturday (Mar 14), South Korea and Japan said, with Tokyo saying it may have been a ballistic missile, while the US and South Korea conducted military drills.The projectile was fired toward the sea off North Korea's east coast, the South Korean mi
JAKARTA: Indonesia's senior economic minister said on Friday (Mar 13) that the country may impose additional taxes on certain commodities, such as palm oil, if the government needs to reduce the impact on the budget from risin
The United States has deployed its USS Tripoli amphibious assault ship to the Middle East, reports say, as the war with Iran enters its third week.
JAKARTA: Two men on a motorbike threw acid in the face of an Indonesian rights activist, leaving him badly hurt and prompting calls on Friday (Mar 13) for a thorough investigation amid concerns of democratic backsliding in the country.Andrie Yunus, deputy coordinator of the KontraS rights group, sustained se
The Malaysian government is in a strong position to absorb the higher costs due to the various fiscal reforms and consolidation measures implemented over the past three years, said Finance Minister II Amir Hamzah Azizan.
A second arms package, worth around US$14 billion, could be approved for Taiwan after US President Donald Trump visits Beijing later this month.
TEHRAN: Fresh strikes rocked Iran and several Gulf countries on Friday (Mar 13), as Israel and the Islamic Republic unleashed a new wave of attacks in a war that has ignited the Middle East and threatens to torpedo the wor