China pushed for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz after hosting Iran’s foreign minister, an exchange that reflected Beijing’s fraught position in the conflict.
China’s renewed call for a ceasefire comes as the Trump administration has urged Beijing to wield its influence with Tehran to unblock the waterway.
The move could also elevate energy issues on the agenda when US President Donald Trump meets with Chinese leader Xi Jinping next week.
A failure to end the war by then could give Beijing additional leverage, Bloomberg wrote.
China is caught between preserving ties with Iran, wanting global energy flows to resume, and striving to maintain US relations before the summit.
Hormuz is “increasingly a pressure point” in US-China negotiations, an analyst said.