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Han Zheng pushes back at US in UNGA speech: respect Gulf sovereignty, lift Cuba blockade
China's Vice President Han Zheng told the 81st UN General Assembly on Saturday that the sovereignty of Middle East and Gulf states should be respected, and urged "the relevant country" to stop threatening Cuba and fully lift its blockade and sanctions.
Why it matters
The speech came just two days after the Trump–Xi summit in Washington, where Trump feted Xi with military flyovers and a lavish state dinner. Han's remarks — a pointed but unnamed rebuttal of Washington — showed the summit's warmth did not shift Beijing's positions on Iran, Cuba, trade or multilateralism.
Full report
"The world wants peace not war," Han told the General Debate, urging the world to safeguard the postwar international order centered on the UN, and calling for disputes to be settled through dialogue rather than "unilateral military actions that violate the UN Charter and circumvent Security Council authorization." Major countries, he said, have special responsibilities for peace and should lead by complying with the rules. He called for Gaza's reconstruction to proceed under the principle of "the Palestinians governing Palestine" alongside a return to the two-state solution, cited Xi Jinping's "four points" as guidance on Ukraine, and urged developed countries to honour climate finance commitments.
On Cuba, Han said: "China urges the relevant country to immediately stop using threat of force against Cuba and immediately and completely lift the blockade and sanctions against Cuba." Cuba's electrical grid collapsed earlier this month, plunging millions into darkness as the US presses its oil blockade. His call to respect the sovereignty and security of Middle East states including the Gulf was widely read as a reference to the February US-Israeli strikes on Iran and the ongoing US war against Iran.
On Friday, the US ambassador to China said Trump warned Xi against supporting Iran during the Washington talks and received assurances Beijing would not. That followed reports that Beijing had supplied Iran with shoulder-fired air-defense missile launchers and helped Tehran evade sanctions on its oil sales.
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