Recently, President Xi Jinping held talks at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing with Iranian President Rahid Rahi, who is on a state visit to China. This is Rehi's first visit to China after taking office as president in August 2021, and has attracted great attention from all walks of life in China and Iran and the international community. The friendship between China and Iran has a long history. In recent years, under the joint leadership of the leaders of the two countries, China-Iran relations have maintained a steady momentum of development.

Carry forward traditional friendship

China and Iran enjoy traditional friendship, and the relationship between the two countries has withstood the test of various international vicissitudes. As two ancient civilizations, China and Iran have a history of exchanges dating back thousands of years. During the Western Han Dynasty more than 2,000 years ago, the deputy envoy of the Chinese envoy Zhang Qian visited Iran and received a grand reception. In the 13th century, the famous Iranian poet Saadi recorded his unforgettable trip to Kashgar, Xinjiang, China.

Rain or shine, friendship lasts forever. In January 2016, President Xi Jinping paid a state visit to Iran. The two countries announced the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership, and China-Iran relations reached a new level.

Over the years, the international situation has undergone profound and complex changes, and China-Iran relations have been developing steadily. As President Xi Jinping said in the talks, in the face of the current complex situation of changes in the world, times, and history, China and Iran support each other, work together in solidarity, and join hands to fight against the new crown epidemic. Strategic mutual trust has been continuously consolidated, and practical cooperation has been steadily advancing. It has promoted common interests, upheld international fairness and justice, and written a new chapter in China-Iran friendship.

Since taking office as president, Rahim has repeatedly expressed his positive attitude towards advancing relations with China, pointing out that looking east is the priority direction of Iran's foreign policy. On the eve of this visit to China, President Leahy wrote an article in the Chinese media, describing the relationship between the two countries with the proverb that you will know the pines and cypresses in the cold, and the truth will be seen in adversity.

Both are ancient civilizations and developing countries, and both are committed to realizing national rejuvenation and recasting the glory of ancient civilizations. China and Iran share a common desire to further develop bilateral relations and a practical need to promote cooperation in various fields.

To promote the development of China-Iran relations in the context of the era of accelerated evolution of the century-old situation, the two heads of state used such words——

President Xi Jinping said unwaveringly: China always views and develops China-Iran relations from a strategic perspective. No matter how the international and regional situation changes, China will unswervingly develop friendly cooperation with Iran and promote the continuous development of China-Iran comprehensive strategic partnership. New developments play a positive role in world peace and human progress amid major changes unseen in a century.

President Rahid responded positively: As two independent major countries, Iran and China have a relationship based on the spirit of mutual respect and are sincere strategic partners worthy of mutual trust. Iran's determination to deepen and enhance the Iran-China comprehensive strategic partnership is unswerving and will not be affected by any changes in the international and regional situation.

deepen political mutual trust

A high degree of political mutual trust is a distinctive feature of Sino-Iranian relations. President Rahim's visit to China this time fully demonstrates China's friendship and sincerity towards Iran, a comprehensive strategic partner. Support is a high-frequency word in the talks between the two heads of state. President Xi Jinping said that China supports Iran in safeguarding national sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and national dignity; supports Iran in resisting unilateralism and bullying, and opposes external forces interfering in Iran's internal affairs and undermining Iran's security and stability; China is willing to continue to discuss issues concerning each other's core interests. We will firmly support each other with Iran. President Leahy made it clear that Iran firmly supports China in safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Under the background that external forces frequently try to interfere in the internal affairs of the two countries and harm the interests of the two countries, such mutual support is worth cherishing each other. The continuous development of practical cooperation is another important aspect of China-Iran relations. In recent years, China-Iran practical cooperation in various fields has been steadily advancing. In 2022, the two countries will officially launch the implementation of the comprehensive cooperation plan, and the bilateral trade volume will maintain positive growth. China will continue to maintain Iran's largest trading partner, largest export destination and second largest source of imports.

During the talks, the two heads of state conducted in-depth discussions on promoting China-Iran practical cooperation. President Xi Jinping pointed out that China is willing to work with Iran to implement the comprehensive cooperation plan between the two countries, deepen practical cooperation in trade, agriculture, industry, infrastructure and other fields, and import more high-quality Iranian agricultural products. President Leahy said that Iran hopes to strengthen exchanges with China at all levels, implement the comprehensive cooperation plan between Iran and China, and deepen practical cooperation in trade, infrastructure and other fields. Chinese companies are welcome to invest in Iraq, and more Chinese tourists are expected to travel to Iraq.

As an important country along the Belt and Road, Iran has high expectations for taking the Belt and Road Express to achieve accelerated development. In an article written before his visit to China, President Leahy wrote: China proposed the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative to revive the ancient Silk Road, which closely linked the fate of the two peoples. During the talks, he also specifically mentioned two other major initiatives proposed by President Xi Jinping, expressing his positive intentions: Iran firmly supports the Belt and Road Initiative, the Global Development Initiative and the Global Security Initiative proposed by China, and will actively participate in them. After the talks, the two heads of state jointly witnessed the signing of a series of bilateral cooperation documents, covering agriculture, trade, tourism, environmental protection, health, disaster relief, culture, sports and other fields.

Uphold international fairness and justice

Peace and security in the Middle East are not only related to the interests of countries in the region, but also to global stability and development. Iran is an important country in the Middle East. During the talks, President Xi Jinping said that China appreciates Iran's willingness to actively improve relations with neighboring countries, supports countries in the region to resolve conflicts through dialogue and consultation, and achieve good-neighborly friendship, and is willing to continue to play a constructive role in promoting regional peace and stability. In recent years, China has actively played the role of a responsible major country in promoting peace and stability in the Middle East. China has proposed a series of initiatives aimed at promoting regional peace and stability, including the five-point initiative to achieve security and stability in the Middle East, building a new Middle East security architecture, and a multilateral dialogue platform in the Gulf region, which have been widely appreciated and welcomed by regional countries. Different from the practice of some major countries, China has never divided the sphere of influence in the Middle East, but advocates that the people of the Middle East are the masters of the Middle East, and the Middle East is not someone’s backyard, let alone the so-called vacuum; it always supports the people of the Middle East to explore their own development path independently, and supports National unity and cooperation to solve regional security issues. In this regard, President Leahy has personal feelings. He said in the article: China has shown the world that a country can develop and progress without expansion and help other countries develop. Iran has always respected China's development philosophy.

China and Iran share a common position in opposing unilateralism and hegemony, and opposing interference in internal affairs by external forces. Not long before his visit to China this time, Leahy signed a presidential decree, requiring relevant departments to implement the relevant bills on Iran's entry into the Shanghai Cooperation Organization as quickly as possible. According to reports, Iran has basically completed the procedures required to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. During the talks with President Xi Jinping, President Leahy specifically mentioned that he is willing to maintain good cooperation with China in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and other multilateral venues, jointly safeguard international fairness and justice, and maintain regional and world peace and security.

President Xi Jinping pointed out that China is willing to strengthen communication and coordination with Iran on multilateral platforms such as the United Nations and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, practice genuine multilateralism, and safeguard the common interests of developing countries. The two heads of state also exchanged views on the Iranian nuclear issue. President Xi Jinping said that China will continue to constructively participate in the negotiations on the resumption of implementation of the comprehensive agreement on the Iranian nuclear issue, support Iran in safeguarding its legitimate rights and interests, and promote the early and proper resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue.

The development of friendly relations between China and Iran is beneficial to the two countries, the region, and the world, and it does not target a third party. During this meeting, the two heads of state jointly planned a roadmap for the all-round development of China-Iran relations in the future. The two sides also issued the "Joint Statement between the People's Republic of China and the Islamic Republic of Iran" during the visit. It is believed that the outcomes of this meeting will surely bring more benefits to the two countries and their peoples, and inject more positive energy into promoting peace and stability in the Middle East and maintaining international fairness and justice. Editor/He Yuting