February 14, 2023
Iran’s
President Ebrahim Raisi met China’s leader Xi Jinping Tuesday as part of a
three-day visit to help implement a 25-year cooperation alliance between the
two nations, at a time when both countries are facing pressure from Western
countries over a range of issues.
The high
profile visit—made at the invitation of Xi—is Raisi’s first state visit to the
East Asian nation, and the first of any Iranian President in 20 years.
The two
leaders have only met once before in September at the Shanghai Cooperation
Organisation (SCO) summit in Uzbekistan. In 2021, the year Raisi took office,
the two countries signed a 25-year “strategic cooperation pact,” and they
signed a number of bilateral cooperation documents Tuesday, according to
Chinese state media.
Raisi
arrived alongside the new central bank governor, as well as six members of his
cabinet including ministers who focus on the economy, petroleum, foreign
affairs, trade, transport and urban development, and agriculture.
Iran has
faced sanctions over its nuclear program and criticism for providing drones to
Russia. Meanwhile, U.S.-China ties deteriorated earlier this month after
Washington spotted an alleged Chinese spy balloon within U.S. airspace and
later shot it down.
What does Ebrahim Raisi’s rare state visit represent?
“We are
in the middle of a momentous reordering of world politics. As such, new
alliance patterns are emerging and strengthening,” says Arshin Adib-Moghaddam,
a professor of politics and international studies at London’s School of
Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and author of What is Iran?
“The
Iran-China link must be seen as a part of this new constellation,” adds
Adib-Moghaddam.
Both
countries have faced scrutiny over their stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
almost a year ago. Russia and China are both members of the Shanghai
Cooperation Organisation, a Eurasian political, economic, and security
organization. The body, which formed in 2001 as the Shanghai Five, brought
together Russia, China, and ex-Soviet states in Central Asia. It expanded in
2017 to include India and Pakistan. In September last year, Iran signed a
memorandum to join the organization. The group aims to operate as a
counterweight to Western influence and is the world’s largest regional
organization.
What agreements will likely be reached between Iran and China?
Implementing
the 25-year “strategic cooperation pact” is expected to feature prominently.
The pact is aimed at seeing China invest billions of dollars in Iran’s oil and
gas sectors, in exchange for supplies.
China is
already Iran’s largest trading partner but invested just $162 million in the
first year of Raisi’s presidency. Still, China remains Iran’s largest trading
partner. According to data recorded by Iranian customs for the first 10 months
of the current Iranian calendar year—which ends in March—Tehran’s exports to
Beijing are worth $12.6 billion, while it imported $12.7 billion worth of goods
from China.
Additionally,
regional issues such as Russia’s war in Ukraine and the 2015 Iran nuclear deal
with world powers, of which China is a signatory, are expected to be discussed.
The nuclear talks remain deadlocked but Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator, Ali
Bagheri Kani, is among the Iranian delegation visiting China. The sanctions are
a major impediment to developing new contracts and projects as part of the
25-year cooperation pact.
Also on
the agenda is Iran’s relations with Arab governments. At the end of last year,
Tehran summoned China’s ambassador in Iran after Beijing joined the Gulf
Cooperation Council in issuing a statement that questioned Iran’s territorial
claims in the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran expressed “strong dissatisfaction”
during the visit. While some may expect the issue to be discussed in Beijing,
Arshin Adib-Moghaddam thinks it will be strategically avoided.
He said
that the nations will likely “keep the GCC factor out of their bilateral
relationship, as they are aware that their interests do not have to align on
every geopolitical theater.”
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