Foreign ministers of the G7 countries have agreed to close cooperation after the start of Israeli-American strikes on targets in Iran, APA and DPA reported, citing the Japanese Foreign Ministry.
During a telephone conversation, the United States provided an overview of the latest events and possible prospects for the development of the situation, a Tokyo statement said.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump said that the Iranian head of state and supreme religious leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the strikes.
Japan will continue to make "all necessary diplomatic efforts" regarding Iran in coordination with the international community, including within the G7, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said.
The G7 includes the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom and Canada.
Meanwhile, the foreign ministers of the European Union member states are also planning to hold a conference call today on the current situation in the Middle East.
The Chinese state news agency “Xinhua“ criticized the US-Israeli strikes on Iran, calling them “brazen aggression against a sovereign state“ and “the policy of power and hegemony“.
According to the agency, Washington's use of military force constitutes “an arrogant violation“ of the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and a deviation from “basic norms of international relations“.
“This practice openly "Attacking a sovereign country and pressuring it to overthrow its regime is nothing but power politics and hegemony," Xinhua said. "Aggressive and hegemonic behavior will ultimately backfire," it added.
Meanwhile, China called for an immediate ceasefire and urged all parties to avoid further escalation and resume dialogue and negotiations.
In a statement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry expressed "concern" over the development of the situation and stressed that Iran's sovereignty, security and territorial integrity must be respected, Reuters reported.
Today, the Chinese Embassy in Israel issued a notice urging Chinese citizens to evacuate as soon as possible to safer areas in the country or leave Israel through the Taba border crossing into Egypt.
The United States and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran on Saturday, targeting its military capabilities. Iranian state media reported that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the operation.
The English-language China Daily, affiliated with the Communist Party of China, also condemned the US and Israeli actions. The military operations “create chaos and trigger a cycle of retaliation that could engulf the entire region,” it said in an editorial. “The priority must be to prevent a wider war.”
In recent years, Beijing has strengthened its diplomatic and economic ties with Tehran, although it has no formal alliance with the Islamic Republic. China has supported Iran’s membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in 2023, as well as its accession to the BRICS - formats that Beijing sees as a tool to balance the influence of The United States, Bloomberg recalls.
In 2021, the two countries signed a 25-year strategic cooperation agreement that included promises of about $400 billion in Chinese investment, but its implementation remains limited. China’s economic interests in the wider Persian Gulf region go beyond those in Iran.
Beijing has refrained from providing Tehran with weapons due to fears of US sanctions. In previous escalations, China has condemned military action and pushed for diplomatic initiatives without offering direct material support.