JAKARTA - New hope has emerged amid the Iran war that has not yet subsided. Arab News, quoted Thursday, March 26, reported that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi saw "a glimmer of hope" for peace after the United States and Iran both signaled a possible return to the negotiating table.
But that hope was soon overshadowed by conflicting messages. The White House warned US President Donald Trump was ready to take drastic action if Iran rejected a peace plan to end the war. At the same time, Tehran insisted that no negotiations were underway.
The contradiction shows one thing: the diplomatic track is starting to be mentioned, but the war on the ground has not shown signs of easing after almost four weeks.
Wang conveyed the impetus for the dialogue in separate talks with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan. To Egypt, Wang said the willingness to negotiate from Washington and Tehran opened up opportunities for peace.
"With the United States and Iran both signaling a readiness to negotiate, a glimmer of hope for peace has emerged," Wang told Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, according to Beijing's statement published late Wednesday, quoted by Arab News, Thursday, March 26.
Beijing's statement came hours before Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed that no negotiations were taking place. According to Araghchi, talking about negotiations at this time is the same as admitting defeat.
Trump took the opposite position. At a dinner with Republican members of Congress, Abbas Araghchi insisted that Iran was negotiating and was eager to reach an agreement. Trump also said that Iranian negotiators were afraid to admit it because they were afraid of being killed by their own side.
Amid the cross-examination, China continued to push for a diplomatic track. In talks with Turkey, Wang said the right and wrong sides in the Middle East conflict were "very clear" and supported Ankara's role in helping reopen negotiations.
Previously, Turkey said it had been engaged in intensive diplomacy with Washington and Tehran to stop the war.
For China, a protracted war will only add casualties, increase losses, and expand the impact of the conflict to a wider region. So, even though a glimmer of hope has begun to be mentioned, the path to peace is still blocked by mutual rejections between Washington and Tehran.
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