Rushing back to Riyadh, Wang Dong was not in a hurry to go to Iraq.

The situation has not improved significantly.

Although under the strong intervention of China, Iran promised not to attack the merchant ships of other countries, and only required all ships to notify the Iranian authorities before entering the Strait of Hormuz and to sail in the international shipping lanes, but on the battlefield in Iraq, Iran's investment has not only not decreased, but has increased several times.

At that time, more than 150,000 Iranian soldiers had entered Iraq.

As for the oil tanker that was attacked in Kuwaiti territorial waters, the Iranian authorities have made a formal apology after clarifying the situation and promised to compensate Huaxia for its losses.

Facts are facts, and there is no way to deny them, so it is better to admit your mistakes.

Because there were no casualties and the Iranian authorities promised to compensate for the damages, Huaxia did not continue to condemn Iran, but only demanded that Iran ensure the safety of all Huaxia vessels.

Of course, the escort warships sent to the Persian Gulf did not leave.

According to Yunlong, in the future, sending warships to the Persian Gulf to escort ships entering and leaving the Persian Gulf will become a normal pattern, just like escorting ships in the Gulf of Aden.

That's why there was a need for a port where warships could dock and rest.

It's just that where to get this port, the Chinese authorities have not yet decided.

Iran was the first to welcome, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were also very positive, and even Kuwait jumped out and offered to provide a port.

In fact, from the geographical point of view, there is no need for this at all.

Why?

The port of Gwadar is just east of the Persian Gulf, a few hundred kilometers from the Strait of Hormuz, and the warships can reach it in a day at most if they sail at full speed.

What's more, the port is just for warships to dock and rest.

At least until the infrastructure of Gwadar Port is completed, the escort warships deployed by Huaxia in the Gulf of Aden can only return to China for maintenance, so the deployment cycle of each warship is controlled within half a year, generally about four months.

With such a short deployment cycle, it is not practical to enter the port and dock.

Acquiring a port nearby is more about allowing the supply ships accompanying the warship to obtain supplies nearby, especially fresh food that is difficult to keep for a long time.

In fact, during the escort period in the Gulf of Aden, the Chinese Navy often purchased fresh food such as melons and fruits in Pakistan.

Later, a supply base was obtained in Djibouti, which was also mainly used to stock up on food, so that the escort ships could get the necessary supplies nearby.

From a purely convoy point of view, there is no need for China to acquire ports in the Persian Gulf for the time being.

The main reason for sending this signal is to use its influence to get both sides of the conflict to end their military operations as soon as possible, thereby ending the Iraqi civil war.

However, in the short term, Huaxia will deploy at most a few escort warships in the Persian Gulf.

As for how effective such efforts will be, it is difficult to say, after all, in the Gulf region, China's influence is not even comparable to that of Russia.

Russia has already blatantly come to Iran.

The United States, for its part, has never taken a stand.

Britain's policy in the Middle East is in line with that of the United States.

France is focused on Syria and is less concerned about the Iraqi civil war.

Relying on the strength of a permanent member of the Security Council in China, even if it can have some impact, it will at most prevent the expansion of the conflict.

On the same day that Wang Dong returned to Riyadh, the United Nations Security Council adopted a non-binding condemnation proposal calling on countries involved in the Iraqi civil war to immediately cease military operations and withdraw their troops from Iraq, amid Russia's abstention.

Fortunately, Crown Prince Mohammed has returned to Riyadh.

Immediately after the proposal was approved, Crown Prince Mohammed said that Saudi Arabia and Arab League countries would withdraw their troops as long as Iran withdrew all military personnel deployed in Iraq.

Subsequently, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Kuwait and Jordan responded in the same way.

Now, the ball was kicked at the feet of Iran.

Although Iran has never admitted to sending troops to Iraq, there is no way to deny the fact that more than 100,000 Iranian troops have entered Iraq.

Not to mention the fact that a large number of Iranian-made main battle equipment appeared in Iraq.

If Iran refuses to agree to withdraw its troops, it will be responsible for the conflict.

At that time, Saudi Arabia will have every reason to accuse Iran of expanding the civil war in Iraq, and call on the international community to impose comprehensive sanctions on Iran.

The question is, is it appropriate to withdraw troops now?

Saudi Arabia and other Arab League countries dare to agree to withdraw their troops only because they have armed the Razak regime, and the Razak regime has achieved a relatively obvious advantage on the battlefield.

At that time, Diwaniyah and Najaf had been captured by government forces, and Kut was surrounded by government forces.

Because of the power support of the Arab League countries, the Iraqi government army is full of momentum and has a great deal of courage to take down the posture of Baghdad.

What about the Karim regime?

After retreating to Karbala and Sheila, the rebels had no way to retreat on the frontal battlefield, and if they retreated, it would be Baghdad.

In the Kut direction, the situation of the rebels is not very ideal, and they may not be able to lift the siege of the government forces.

What's more, by this time, the rebels no longer had many heavy weapons. Without Iran's assistance, the rebels would not have been able to defeat the government forces.

You know, the government army has always been short of heavy weapons.

As long as Iran withdraws at this time, government forces will launch an onslaught, and the rebels, who lack heavy equipment, may not be able to hold Baghdad.

Lose Baghdad, where else can the rebels gain a foothold?

Bagubai, or Ramadi?

Don't forget, Baghdad is the transportation hub of Iraq, and losing Baghdad means that the towns in the north are all under the threat of government forces.

Further north, there are Kurdish-controlled areas.

It can be seen that until the situation is reversed, at least partially, the rebels still have to rely on Iran, and therefore cannot withdraw their troops from Iraq.

Now, here's the problem.

Saudi Arabia and other Arab League countries have occupied the diplomatic and moral high ground, but Iran has little choice, not even time.

On the same day, the Chinese authorities said that they were sincerely pleased with the efforts made by Saudi Arabia and other Arab League countries for peace, and that they were willing to work with all peace-loving countries to build peace, jointly defend peace, and crack down on and deal with all extremist forces that threaten and undermine peace.

This is not a simple diplomatic phrase.

In fact, China rarely uses such direct diplomatic rhetoric.

Anyone can tell that Huaxia's patience is running out.

What's more, the diplomatic statement also hinted that as long as Saudi Arabia and other Arab League countries withdraw their troops from Iraq, China will lift the military embargo.

When the time comes, Saudi Arabia and other Arab League countries will be able to purchase weapons and equipment from China.

At this point, is there any other choice for Iran?