China has remained publicly silent after U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday urged Beijing to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the critical oil chokepoint that has been largely shut down during the escalating war with Iran. The standoff around the narrow waterway, through which roughly 20% of the world’s oil supply normally passes, has already sent crude and natural gas prices sharply higher, raising fears of a sustained disruption to global energy flows. According to reporting by the Associated Press, Chinese officials declined to directly…