During the visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to Tehran, he and his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif signed a document on mutual “comprehensive cooperation”.
This involves the establishment of a strategic partnership that is to last for an initial period of 25 years. The partnership will cover various areas, with a special focus on technology, industry, infrastructure and energy. The total trade volume is to be expanded to 600 billion dollars.
For Iran, this is a further step in its strategic orientation towards the East, which it is pursuing in view of its enmity with the leading Western power, the USA. Cooperation with China, but also with India and Russia, as well as the ambivalent relations with Turkey and Pakistan are in the foreground. The large European nations France, Great Britain and Germany, which are also involved in the so-called Iran Agreement, do not currently see themselves in a position to expand trade with Iran because the US sanctions put a stop to this.
For China, Iran is a very interesting partner in two respects. On the one hand, Iran has an excellent geographical location where it can act as a hub between Europe, Africa and Asia. For the Belt and Road project, which China is trying to establish across the Eurasian continent, the country thus plays an important role. On the other hand, Iran is the only country in the region that can act completely independently of the United States of America. All other countries are in one way or another intertwined with the USA or NATO and could thus take a stand against China.
Iran could emerge as the key to domination on the Eurasian continent. And the West is currently only a spectator.
Simon Dierich 