TEHRAN- China has demanded that the U.S. take “a constructive role” in the West Asian region, and denounced the Israeli attack on Iran’s diplomatic facilities in Syria.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi “expressed China’s strong condemnation” of the terrorist attack by Israel on Iran’s diplomatic premises in the Syrian capital of Damascus on April 1 during a phone conversation with his U.S. counterpart Antony Blinken on Thursday, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry Mao Ning said on Friday. 

According to the spokesperson, the senior Chinese diplomat stressed the “inviolable” right to diplomatic facility security as well as the necessity of respecting Syria’s and Iran’s sovereignty. 

“China will continue to play a constructive role in resolving the Middle East issue and help deescalate the situation,” Mao said.

“The U.S. in particular needs to play a constructive role,” she added.

According to the U.S. State Department, Blinken requested that his Chinese counterpart utilize Beijing’s clout to discourage Tehran from attacking Israel. 

One of the seven Iranian martyrs of Israel’s missile attack on the consular section of the Iranian embassy in Damascus on April 1 was Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, a senior commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force, along with his deputy General Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi. 

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei declared that the Israeli regime “must be punished and will be punished” for its murderous attack on the Iranian diplomatic grounds during a speech in Tehran on Wednesday following holding the Eid al-Fitr prayers. 

Ayatollah Khamenei added, “The evil Zionist regime committed another mistake ...  and that was the attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria. The consulate and diplomatic missions in any country are considered to be the territory of that country. When they attack our consulate, it means they have attacked our soil.” 

Ayatollah Khamenei strongly criticized Western governments for their role in the months-long Israeli onslaught against Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip. 

He expressed his dismay at the actions of Western nations, particularly in their support for the Israeli regime, which has led to a devastating toll on innocent civilians in the enclave.

According to Iran’s UN mission, the UN Security Council’s criticism of Israeli strike on its consular office in the Syrian capital may have thwarted reprisal in a post on the social media platform X on Thursday.

“Had the UN Security Council condemned the Zionist regime’s reprehensible act of aggression on our diplomatic premises in Damascus and subsequently brought to justice its perpetrators, the imperative for Iran to punish this rogue regime might have been obviated,” it said.

“This round of escalation is the latest spillover of the Gaza conflict,” the Chinese spokesperson said, adding, “The pressing need now is to bring an end to the conflict as soon as possible.”

She reiterated Beijing’s calls on parties to the conflict to implement UN Security Council Resolution 2728 and put in place an immediate ceasefire.