Iran and China start comprehensive strategic partnership

Today a visit of President Xi Jinping to Iran took place, which completed a tour of the Chinese leader to the Middle East, after previously visiting Saudi Arabia and Egypt. This trip was the first visit to Iran by a chairman of the People's Republic of China in 14 years, and the arrival of the first world leader to Iran after the lifting of the sanctions against Iran.

The Middle East tour of the Chinese president has provoked a strong reaction in the Chinese media, and the media of the host countries: for a few days before the Chinese authorities spoke about the future visits, the Chinese government had promulgated the country's first paper on the strategy for relations with the Arab world. At the briefing on January 18th, Deputy Foreign Minister of China Zhang Ming, commenting on the visit of Xi Jinping to Iran, stressed that Beijing is determined to consistently expand cooperation with Tehran. The deputy minister assured that "China and Iran will work to make this visit a turning point in bilateral relations."

The chairman of China in an article published in the Iranian press and posted on the website of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs paid special attention to the achievement and the beginning of the implementation of a comprehensive agreement on the Iranian nuclear program ‘for common development and prosperity’. And during the actual visit, after meeting with the president of Iran Hassan Rouhani, Xi voiced China's willingness to establish a strategic partnership  with Iran. "We had a detailed exchange of views on a wide range of issues. We have reached a broad consensus. It was a friendly dialogue. We have also agreed today to raise our relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership and issued a corresponding statement," RIA Novosti quotes him as saying.

The Chinese President pointed out that this decision shows that the parties are fully confident in the level of political engagement and are going to support each other on the issues that are of interest of Tehran and Beijing, particularly in the energy sector.

Xi also said that China could provide Iran with the required financial assistance. He recalled that China has played a role of a major trading partner of Iran for many years. "Further consolidation and development of bilateral relations is in the long-term interests of the two countries," the chairman of the People's Republic of China said.

He said that the Chinese government supports Iran's bid for full membership in the SCO after the lifting of the UN sanctions, which were preventing it.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani described the visit by the Chinese leader as ‘historic and correct’. He said that the parties entered into a number of ‘important bilateral agreements’ and reviewed the plan of economic and trade cooperation in the next 25 years. "Today we also discussed the 25-year plan for the development of bilateral economic and trade cooperation. We set a goal to increase the volume of bilateral trade to $600 billion in the next 10 years,"  Rouhani said

The two sides also agreed to strengthen cooperation in the exchange of intelligence and the joint struggle against regional threats, terrorism and extremism. "We discussed security cooperation to help countries such as Syria, Yemen and Afghanistan, which are at risk. We will strengthen the exchange of intelligence information and will work on how to fight terrorism jointly," the president of Iran said.

The joint statement also condemned the unjust sanctions. "China and Iran oppose the use or threat of use of force, the introduction of unjust sanctions against other states and terrorism in all its forms,"  the document reads.

"The parties are in favor of international problems being solved through negotiations and political dialogue," the statement emphasizes.

A total of 17 agreements were signed, including in the sphere of peaceful nuclear energy.