The Chinese Government has warned this Monday that the prolongation of the war in the Middle East, unleashed by the offensive initiated on February 28 by Israel and the United States against Iran, could push the entire area towards “uncontrollable chaos”, after the American president, Donald Trump, threatened to destroy Iranian power plants if Tehran does not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
"The flames of war in the Middle East continue to spread," lamented the spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lin Jian, who highlighted that "if the conflict continues to expand and the situation worsens, the entire region will fall into uncontrollable chaos."
"The use of force will only lead to a vicious circle", Lin stressed, who reiterated Beijing's "firm call" to all involved parties to "immediately cease military operations, return to dialogue and negotiations, and prevent this war, which should never have started, from continuing."
Along these lines, it has stressed that “China maintains communication with all relevant parties on the current situation and remains committed to promoting a reduction of tensions”, according to the Chinese newspaper ‘Global Times’.
US and Iran, crossed threats
Trump on Saturday gave Iran a 48-hour ultimatum to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, assuring that, otherwise, he will attack the country's power plants and warning that there will be “total destruction”. “The destruction of Iran is going to be total and it's going to work wonderfully,” he maintained.
In response, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard has warned this Monday that it is “determined to respond to any threat” and has stressed that, if Trump fulfills his warnings, Tehran will attack “the power plants of the occupying regime (Israel) and those of the countries in the region that supply electricity to US bases,” as well as “the economic, industrial, and energy infrastructure in which the United States is a shareholder.”
The Iranian authorities have confirmed in their latest count more than 1,500 dead from the offensive by Israel and the United States --including 210 children--, while the non-governmental organization Human Rights Activists in Iran, based in the United States, raises the figure to more than 3,000 dead.
Among the fatalities are top-level figures such as the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei; the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani; and the ministers of Defense and Intelligence, Aziz Nasirzadeh and Esmaeil Khatib, respectively, in addition to high-ranking commanders of the Armed Forces and officials from other security agencies.