The boss begins Ato an Iranian Ibrahim Raisi Tuesday, a three-day official visit to China To enhance cooperation between the two countries, amid tensions with the West.
In 2021, China signed a broad strategic agreement for 25 years with Iran, on which the United States imposes harsh sanctions that stifle its economy.
The main partnership should cover areas as diverse as energy, security, infrastructure and communications. The two presidents met for the first time in September, during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit, which was organized in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
Western countries accuse Iran of providing support to Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, which began about a year ago, by providing it with armed drones, which Iran vehemently denies.
Ebrahim Raisi arrived in Beijing in the early hours of Tuesday morning, according to pictures of Iranian state television, in which he appeared as he got off the plane.
The Iranian president’s visit to China comes at a time when Iran is witnessing a protest movement that erupted following the death of the young woman, Mahsa Amini, on September 16, days after she was arrested by the morality police for violating the strict dress code in the Islamic Republic.
Raisi will be received by Chinese President Xi Jinping, while the full program of the visit is still unknown.
Oil, energy, transportation, agriculture, trade and investment
During this summit, the Iranian president called for strengthening economic relations with Beijing, especially in the fields of “oil, energy, transportation, agriculture, trade and investment.”
For its part, Beijing has long sought to strengthen its relations with Tehran. President Xi Jinping described Iran as “China’s main partner in the Middle East” during a rare visit to the country in 2016.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told the press Monday that Beijing wants to “play a constructive role in strengthening unity and cooperation with countries in the Middle East, and promoting security and stability in the region.”
Ebrahim Raisi will also meet with Chinese businessmen and Iranian citizens living in China, according to the official Iranian news agency IRNA.
China is Iran’s largest trading partner, and it was one of the largest buyers of Iranian oil before former US President Donald Trump reimposed sanctions on Tehran in 2018, after the United States withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal.
Unprecedented visit since 2000
Iran and the major countries had started talks in April 2021 in Vienna with the aim of reviving this international agreement that guarantees the civilian nature of Iran’s nuclear program, at a time when Tehran is accused of seeking to acquire a nuclear weapon, which it denies. However, these talks reached an impasse.
Beijing is a member of the group seeking to revive this agreement between Tehran and the six major countries (China, Russia, the United States, France, Germany and the United Kingdom).
Iran’s chief negotiator, Ali Bagheri, is accompanying President Ebrahim Raisi to China. Also, the Iranian president is accompanied by the ministers of foreign affairs, economy, finance and oil, according to Iranian state television.
The last visit of an Iranian president to China dates back to June 2018, when President Hassan Rouhani (2013-2021) participated in a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
On the other hand, the last state visit of an Iranian president to China dates back to 2000 during the reign of Mohammad Khatami (1997-2005).
France 24/AFP
