TEHRAN – An adviser to Iran’s Islamic Revolution leader Seyyed Ali Khamenei has called for Iran and China to cooperate closely in all aspects, a call that comes as the two countries’ long-standing friendship appears closer than ever.
“The two countries enjoy strategic and deep-rooted relations, and mutual cooperation has the potential to further expand in the context of regional and international developments,” Aliakbar Velayati said in a meeting with the Chinese ambassador to Tehran.
During the meeting, the two countries exchanged views on bilateral, regional and international developments and emphasized the need to strengthen strategic ties between Tehran and China.
The two officials also discussed excessive demands for American intervention around the world and the White House’s support for Israeli crimes in Gaza.
“China-Iran relations are based on common interests, mutual respect and political independence,” Velayati explained.
He also said that Iran and China are among the powerful countries in Asia.
He added, “Asia has three independent major powers, Iran, China, and Russia, and they are playing an effective role in shaping the new world order.”
This comes after the presidents of Iran and China pledged to fully implement the 25-year Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Document, which focuses on close cooperation between the two countries in all fields.
During a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing in early October, President Masoud Pezeshkian also expressed Tehran’s support for Xi’s global governance initiative and said Iran was ready to cooperate with China under all circumstances to take relations to the “maximum level.”
Pezeshkian said China can rely on Iran as a “strong and determined” partner and expressed interest in joint projects including high-speed rail and highways. He also criticized the United States for pursuing unilateral policies and interfering in other countries.
Xi said China is committed to advancing relations with Iran with a “future-oriented outlook” and called for prompt implementation of bilateral agreements, including those discussed at the previous meeting in Kazan.
The Chinese leader described Iran as a “strategic partner” and called for closer cooperation within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to counter unilateralism. After Pezeshkian’s return, Khamenei said that his visit to China was important.
Meanwhile, Velayati also expressed appreciation for China’s stand on the so-called “snapback mechanism” exercised by the three European countries, saying that Beijing’s support for Iran in the international community shows the level of friendly relations and mutual trust between the two countries.
China has always expressed opposition to reinstating sanctions against Iran under the so-called snapback mechanism.
More than a month ago, Iran, China and Russia announced in a letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres that there was no legal basis for the UK, France and Germany to reimpose illegal sanctions against Iran.
“The efforts of the three European countries to trigger the so-called ‘snapback’ mechanism are legally flawed and lack a legal basis,” the letter to Guterres and Wassily Nebenzia said.
The two leaders reiterated that the three EU member states themselves had failed to defend their side of the agreement.
“The three European states themselves have violated their commitments under (Security Council) resolution 2231 and have refused to follow the trends set out in the ‘Dispute Settlement Mechanism’ and are therefore not entitled to refer to its provisions,” the letter added.
“Within this framework, we reiterate that in accordance with the effective Article 8 of resolution 2231, all its provisions expire after 18 October 2025. We reiterate that the full and prompt termination of resolution 2231 corresponds to the end of consideration of the Iranian nuclear issue in the UN Security Council and strengthens the authority of the Security Council and the credibility of multilateral diplomacy,” the letter further reads.
Britain, France and Germany triggered a snapback on August 28, beginning the process of reinstating all UN sanctions against Iran.