Xi says World Order ‘crumbling into disarray’ as war takes toll

President Xi Jinping
Photo: Xinhua

Chinese President Xi Jinping lamented a world in “disarray,” using some of his strongest language yet to describe a collapse of the Western-led international order as he vowed to play a constructive role in the Middle East, Bloomberg reports.

“The international order is crumbling into disarray,” Xi told Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Tuesday in Beijing, using a Chinese phrase indicating not only chaos but also moral decay.

The comments, part of Xi’s first public statements on the Iran war since the conflict began more than a month ago, followed a flurry of visits by world leaders to Beijing and fresh economic data on Tuesday showing the war took a sharp toll on Chinese exports in March. Xi has framed his country as a stabilizing force in a world thrown into turmoil by Donald Trump’s erratic approach to trade and foreign policy.

In an earlier meeting with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohammed, Xi reiterated that China would continue to play a “constructive role” in the Middle East. While a readout of those talks didn’t mention the Iran war specifically, it noted that the two sides “exchanged views on the current situation in the Middle East and the Gulf region.”

China has criticized the military action against Iran and warned it risks plunging the Middle East into deeper instability. Foreign Minister Wang Yi has urged the international community to step up efforts to promote peace talks between Iran and the US, warning that the current truce remains fragile and must be preserved.

The durability of the ceasefire that began earlier this month is now being tested, with the US president ordering a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which took effect Monday. The US and Iran are in discussions about holding another round of face-to-face negotiations after meetings in Islamabad over the weekend ended in failure, Bloomberg reported earlier, citing people familiar with the matter.

China’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday called the blockade “dangerous and irresponsible” and vowed to take countermeasures if the US raises tariffs on Chinese exports over the Iran conflict.

The meeting between Sánchez and Xi is their fourth in just over three years as Spain positions itself as one of China’s closest friends in Europe. Spain has been among the European countries most strongly opposed to the US-Israeli war in Iran, which Sánchez has described as “illegal.”

“Both China and Spain are nations of principle and integrity,” Xi said, adding that the two sides should “enhance communication, consolidate mutual trust, and cooperate closely to resist any regression toward the law of the jungle.”

During opening remarks at the meeting on Tuesday, Sanchez said he was in Beijing so the two countries can “contribute to providing solutions to the various trade tensions, the difficulties and geopolitical complexities of today’s world, the wars, and the environmental and social challenges affecting the world.”

Sánchez defended establishing “an even stronger bond between China and the European Union.” Despite the skepticism of some other European countries regarding China, the Spanish premier said that cooperation between both blocs “will benefit their societies and also contribute to the stability, peace, and prosperity of the world.”

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