Amid rising tensions in the Middle East, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz sparked controversy this week by floating an unlikely diplomatic gambit: enlisting China as a mediator in the spiraling conflict between Israel and Iran.
Speaking at the Center for American Progress, Walz posed a provocative question: “Who is the voice in the world that can negotiate some type of agreement and hold the moral authority? It might be the Chinese.” The remarks come as Israel’s targeted strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities killed Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami, head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps—prompting a barrage of retaliatory missile fire from Tehran. Global observers now warn of a widening regional war. Walz, unsurprisingly, doesn’t think the communist nation holding millions of Muslims in what is essentially slavery might be a problem with their moral authority in the Middle East.
Tim Walz on Israel striking Iran: “Who is the voice in the world that can negotiate some type of agreement and hold the moral authority? It might be the Chinese.” pic.twitter.com/tLQFgOj0xL
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) June 13, 2025
But it was Walz’s choice of potential peacemaker that turned heads—not least because of his long and complicated relationship with the Chinese government. Over the course of his political and educational career, Walz has made nearly 30 visits to China, many involving school exchange programs subsidized by Chinese-linked institutions. Though marketed as cultural enrichment, those trips are now under renewed scrutiny.
A whistleblower recently alleged that Walz may have been targeted by Chinese intelligence operatives during his time abroad and others outright accused the governor of helping China smuggle out military secrets.
Alpha News wrote during the 2024 election that learned from a former National Guard colleague of Walz that, during that time, a classified document allegedly went missing—the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) manual detailing the howitzer’s nuclear capabilities.
The retired Nebraska National Guard soldier, who worked with Walz for three years, recounted the disappearance in a phone interview with Alpha News. Fearing retaliation, he wishes to remain anonymous but is willing to cooperate with the FBI.
According to the retired soldier, Walz had just returned from another trip to China around the time when the manual went missing. He alleges Walz was one of the few with access to the building where the top-secret manual was stored and was “often the only one there.” The former battalion member said he believes Walz stole the nuclear SOP manual and later returned it.
Alpha News asked why the missing manual was never reported. The former battalion member explained there was frustration at the time within the unit over Walz “double-dipping,” as he was holding a full-time teaching job while also being expected to serve full time with the unit. He claims that Walz frequently neglected key duties, such as recruitment and payroll, which allegedly raised concerns to the point that a superior had to investigate. The former soldier stated that the unit was more focused on those issues, and when the manual eventually reappeared, it went unreported. In hindsight, the soldier believes he should have reported it when it first went missing but feared repercussions for not addressing it sooner.
In 1995, transferring classified information required in-person exchanges due to the limitations of technology at the time. Around the same period, Tim Walz, a National Guardsman, was involved in a strange incident where he was pulled over in Nebraska for speeding at 96 mph in a 55-mph zone. The arresting officer noted a strong odor of alcohol, and Walz failed sobriety tests. Despite having no history of alcohol abuse, Walz claimed he believed someone was chasing him, leaving questions about the incident unanswered.
Representative Eli Crane, a Republican from Arizona, voiced the sentiment plainly, writing on Twitter: “Yesterday, I called Tim Walz out for his obsession with China. Today, he reaffirmed his obsession with China.” Others pointed to Walz’s 1989 stint teaching in China as part of a broader pattern of ideological and diplomatic alignment.
Yesterday, I called Tim Walz out for his obsession with China.
Today, he reaffirmed his obsession with China. pic.twitter.com/Tro0KtHpKn
— Rep. Eli Crane (@RepEliCrane) June 13, 2025
Analysts are split on the merits of the proposal. China has increasingly cast itself as a global powerbroker, mediating deals from the Persian Gulf to the Horn of Africa. Some argue Beijing’s economic reach and quiet diplomacy could make it a credible interlocutor in the Middle East. Yet others say China’s deep ties to Iran and record of domestic repression—particularly its persecution of Uyghur Muslims—undermine any claim to moral authority.
The governor’s office has not issued a follow-up statement clarifying his comments.
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Can you have “moral authority “ without morals?