China steps out of the shadows in Iran war

China steps out of the shadows in Iran war Asia / Pacific

To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement.

Accept Manage my choices

One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading. To watch this content, you may need to disable it on this site.

Try again

13:06

Issued on: 17/04/2026 - 17:10

13:06 min Share Play (13:06 min) From the show Reading time 1 min

China's President Xi Jinping has broken a six-week silence about the war in Iran, vowing to take a "constructive" role in efforts to end the conflict. Beijing is wary of being drawn into a war it took no part in, and faces a delicate balancing act between its long-term partnership with Iran and its strategic interests in the Middle East and beyond. Yuka Royer speaks with Ja Ian Chong, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore, about what's behind Beijing's calculations. 

Also on the show:

India has embarked on a costly and long-overdue project to update its official population count. The year-long census involves multiple phases, with millions of officials carrying out door-to-door surveys. Last tallied in 2011, the new nationwide survey could redefine welfare programmes and redraw political representations in the world's most populous nation. 

Finally, one of Bollywood's most iconic voices, singer Asha Bhosle, has passed away at the age of 92. Celebrated for mixing traditional, religious and Western melodies in her songs, Bhosle dominated the Indian music industry for over seven decades. 

By: Yuka ROYER Sonia BARITELLO Stéphanie CHEVAL Advertising Related keywords

• Iran war
• China
• Xi Jinping
• Iran
• Donald Trump