The United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting on Saturday afternoon following US and Israeli military strikes against Iran, amid escalating tensions across the Middle East.

China's permanent representative to the UN, Fu Cong, said it was "shocking" that the military strikes occurred at a time when diplomatic negotiations between the United States and Iran were ongoing, urging relevant parties to demonstrate political sincerity and resume talks as soon as possible.

China is "deeply concerned" over the escalation of tensions in the region, Fu said.

The US and Israel on Saturday launched "major combat operations" against Iran, which later retaliated with counterattacks targeting Israeli and US military installations in several Arab states across the region, including Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

Fu said US and Israeli strikes against Iran had led to a "sudden escalation of regional tensions", and urged all parties to abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

"China has consistently maintained that all parties should observe the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and opposes and condemns the use or threat of force in international relations," he said.

Fu stressed that the sovereignty, security and territorial integrity of Iran and other countries in the region must be respected, and said China is "deeply saddened" by the heavy civilian casualties caused by the conflict.

"At no time should the red line of protecting civilians in armed conflict be crossed, and the indiscriminate use of force is unacceptable," he said, calling on all parties to fulfill their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, and to effectively protect civilians and avoid attacks on civilian facilities.

"Force is not the right way to resolve international disputes," Fu said. "The spillover of escalating tensions in the Middle East is in no one's interest. Resolving differences through dialogue and negotiations is the only viable way forward."

Mike Waltz, the US ambassador to the United Nations, insisted the US military action was lawful, while Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon defended the airstrikes as necessary to stop an existential threat.

Amir Saeid Iravani, Iranian ambassador to the United Nations, called the US-Israel strikes "war crimes".

The meeting was convened at the request of China, Russia, France, Bahrain and Colombia.

minluzhang@chinadailyusa.com

Agencies contributed to this story.