Chinese President Xi Jinping met Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday, calling China-Russia relations "precious" and urging closer strategic coordination between the two countries. The meeting came as a wave of foreign leaders — including Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and newly elected Vietnamese President To Lam — descended on Beijing amid growing alarm over the US-Israel war on Iran, which has choked traffic through the Strait of Hormuz (a critical waterway through which roughly 20 percent of the world's oil and gas exports normally pass). Lavrov offered that Russia could "compensate" for China's resulting energy shortfall, while Xi positioned Beijing as a potential mediator, telling Abu Dhabi's crown prince that China would play a "constructive role" in promoting peace talks — reflecting the urgent pressure on China to use its influence with Tehran to de-escalate the conflict.