China to send aid to Iran, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan as Trump delays Beijing summit
The aid announcement comes as President Donald Trump said Tuesday that his late March visit to China would be postponed.
China will provide emergency humanitarian assistance to Iran, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq as war rages across the Middle East, marking Beijing’s first material response to the conflict so far.
What happened: Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian announced the aid Tuesday in a post on X, writing that "we hope this will help ease the difficult humanitarian situation facing the people there." He did not provide further details.
China has announced the decision to provide emergency humanitarian assistance to Iran, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq. We hope this will help ease the difficult humanitarian situation facing the people there.
— Lin Jian 林剑 (@SpoxCHN_LinJian) March 17, 2026
China will continue striving for a ceasefire, an early return of peace and… pic.twitter.com/UC9aTYmZvb
The four countries are facing very different pressures from the conflict. Iran has come under attack from both the United States and Israel, with more than 1,400 people killed, while Lebanon has also come under Israeli attack after Hezbollah entered the conflict March 2. More than 900 people have been killed in Lebanon, and more than 1 million have been displaced by the attacks. Jordan, meanwhile, has come under attack by Iranian drones and missiles, while Iraq has seen Iran-backed militias attack Baghdad and Erbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan Region.
Beijing dispatched its special Middle East envoy, Zhai Jun, to the region less than two weeks ago. He met with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain last week and with his Kuwaiti counterpart Sunday.
