Wang Yi had a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov

People’s Finance News, April 5—On April 5, Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, held a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov as scheduled, exchanging views on the current situation in the Middle East. Lavrov said that Russia is highly concerned about the continued escalation of the situation in the Middle East. Regarding the current fighting and the issue of the Strait of Hormuz, Russia holds that military actions must be stopped immediately, that the situation should return to the political and diplomatic track, and that the root causes of the conflict should be addressed. The UN Security Council should play a constructive role in this regard. Russia is willing to closely communicate and coordinate with China, and to continue speaking out and taking action to help promote a ceasefire and stop the fighting. Wang Yi said that China and Russia, as permanent members of the UN Security Council, should demonstrate fairness on major issues, adopt an objective and balanced approach, and strive to win more understanding and support from the international community. China has always advocated resolving international and regional hot-button issues through dialogue and negotiations via political means. At present, the situation in the Middle East is still deteriorating and the fighting is still escalating. The fundamental way to resolve the issue of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz is to achieve a ceasefire and stop the fighting as soon as possible. China is willing to continue cooperating with Russia in the UN Security Council, to communicate in a timely manner on major issues, and to make efforts to cool down the situation and to maintain regional peace and stability and the shared security of the world. (Xinhua News Agency)