Blinken, Wang Yi discuss Israel-Hamas war on call, stresses need to de-escalate conflict

US State Secretary Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held a phone call on Wednesday to discuss the Israel-Hamas war and stressed the need to de-escalate the conflict. According to the US State Department, Blinken “reiterated the imperative of all parties working to prevent the conflict from spreading.” In response, Wang Yi said that about the war between Israel and Hamas, “the top priority is to cease fire and end the war as soon as possible”. “Major countries must adhere to fairness and justice, uphold objectivity and impartiality, demonstrate calm and rationality, and make every effort to cool down the situation and prevent larger-scale humanitarian disasters,” Wang said, according to the Chinese foreign ministry. During the call with Blinken, Wang also reiterated Beijing’s call for a two-state solution, stressing “any arrangement involving the future of Palestine must reflect the will of the Palestinian people”. “China is willing to work with all parties to make efforts to this end,” he said. The US State Department said that Blinken also raised recent attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, describing them as “an unacceptable threat to maritime security and international law that all nations have an obligation to uphold.” With inputs from AFP