• China 'values security of Gulf countries and supports them in maintaining a restrained attitude,' Foreign Minister Wang Yi tells Russian counterpart Lavrov

ISTANBUL

China on Sunday denounced the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli attacks on Iran's capital a day earlier.

“The attack and killing of Iran’s supreme leader is a grave violation of Iran’s sovereignty and security,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement on US social media company X.

“It tramples on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and basic norms in international relations. China firmly opposes and strongly condemns it,” the statement said.

Reiterating the call for an “immediate” end to the military operations in the Middle East, the ministry stressed the need for a “joint effort” to maintain peace and stability in the Middle East and the “world at large.”

Chinese, Russian top diplomats discuss Iranian situation

Separately, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov Sunday discussed the latest situation in Iran, according to a statement from Beijing’s Foreign Ministry.

During a phone call initiated by Moscow, Wang urged an “immediate cessation of military operations, a prompt return to dialogue and negotiations, and a joint opposition to unilateral actions.”

"The attacks by the US and Israel on Iran during the Iran-US negotiation process are unacceptable, as is the blatant assassination of a leader of a sovereign state and the incitement of regime change," he said.

The attacks came as talks between Washington and Tehran over Iran’s nuclear program had been ongoing under Oman’s mediation.

Wang warned the conflict risks pushing the region "to a dangerous brink," a possibility China is "highly concerned" about.

Stressing the need to cease military actions, he said China "values the security of the Gulf countries and supports them in maintaining a restrained attitude."

Tehran early Sunday announced the death of Khamenei, 86, following US-Israeli bombardment on the Iranian capital on Saturday.

It also declared 40 days of public mourning in the country.

The Iranian Supreme National Security Council said Khamenei was killed at his office early Saturday, and that his death would mark the beginning of a “great uprising against the tyrants of the world.”

Ahead of Tehran’s confirmation, US President Donald Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform Truth Social that Khamenei was “dead.”