China, Pakistan to 'strengthen' cooperation on Iran: Beijing

China and Pakistan will "strengthen" their cooperation on Iran, Beijing's foreign ministry said Tuesday, as senior Islamabad officials visited the Chinese capital.

The Asian neighbours have both sought to mediate in the Middle East to prevent the conflict from escalating, with Islamabad saying it was ready to host "meaningful talks" between the United States and Iran.

Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, who is also deputy prime minister, is visiting Beijing where he will meet with top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi for talks on international and bilateral issues.

"The two foreign ministers will strengthen strategic communication and coordination on the Iran situation and... make new efforts toward advocating for peace," Beijing's foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told a press conference, calling China and Pakistan "all-weather" strategic partners.

Dar's visit comes after he hosted his counterparts from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey on Sunday for talks about trying to end the war in the Middle East, which was triggered by US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.

Concerns are running high about the impact of the fighting, including the choking of maritime traffic through the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

China is a key partner of Iran but has not announced military assistance to Tehran, instead repeatedly calling for a ceasefire.

Tehran has refused to admit to holding official talks with Washington but has passed a response to Trump's 15-point plan to end the war via Islamabad, according to an anonymous source cited by the Iranian Tasnim news agency.

Pakistan is one of China's closest partners in the region, but Beijing has called for "calm and restraint" in Islamabad's own conflict with Afghanistan.

A Chinese special envoy spent a week mediating between the two countries, Beijing's foreign ministry said this month.

Meanwhile, Beijing expressed "gratitude" on Tuesday as it said three Chinese ships had transited the crucial Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has all but closed during the war in the Middle East.

"Following coordination with relevant parties, three Chinese vessels recently transited the Strait of Hormuz; we express our gratitude to the relevant parties for the assistance provided," Mao Ning told newsmen.

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Earlier, two container vessels belonging to the Chinese shipping giant Cosco have successfully passed through the Strait of Hormuz as they have exited the Gulf, ship tracking data showed Tuesday.

Shipping through the strait has slowed to a trickle in recent weeks as Iran has all but closed the crucial waterway following US-Israeli attacks on the country.

The CSCL Indian Ocean crossed the strait at around 0914 GMT on Monday, followed by CSCL Arctic Ocean 27 minutes later, according to data from Marine Traffic.

They passed close to the Iranian-controlled island of Larak and are bound for Port Klang in Malaysia.

Cosco refused to comment on the transit when asked by AFP.

Iran has said that the strait is open to ships of "friendly countries". It maintains healthy diplomatic ties with China.

The two ships, both ultra-large container vessels belonging to state-owned Cosco, had aborted an attempt to transit on Friday, according to Marine Traffic.

Cosco said on Wednesday it was resuming bookings for shipments from Asia to several Gulf countries, though without using routes that transit Hormuz.

The Shanghai-based firm had suspended bookings for services through the strait earlier in March due to the war.