Iran’s Foreign Minister Heads to Beijing
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian is in Beijing today to meet with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, the first visit to China by a member of Iran’s cabinet since new President Ebrahim Raisi took charge in August.
Amir-Abdollahian’s trip comes amid a flurry of Middle East-focused diplomacy for Beijing, with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman, as well as the Gulf Cooperation Council secretary-general all paying visits this week.
Iran’s top diplomat is set to discuss the 25-year security and economic cooperation agreement signed between the two countries in March. The $400 billion deal would see China invest in several sectors of Iran’s economy, from finance to infrastructure. It would also see both powers forge closer military ties.
With biting sanctions continuing to cripple the Iranian economy and a government wary that any rapprochement with the West could be scratched out by a future Oval Office occupant’s pen, the benefits to Tehran of a deeper relationship with its number one trading partner are obvious.
But what’s in it for Beijing? A steady (and possibly cheap) supply of Iranian oil, for one thing. But there’s more upside to engaging with Iran than just economics.
Given Iran’s geopolitical position outside the U.S sphere of influence, the relationship makes sense for Chinese leaders who know they can engage with a willing partner, Scott W. Harold, an expert on Chinese foreign policy at the Rand Corporation, told Foreign Policy.
It’s by no means an ironclad alliance, however, with Tehran still nursing grievances from China’s decisions to back U.N. sanctions against it as well as broader fears over Chinese domination. “This relationship is useful to both sides, but it’s not necessarily one based on trust,” Harold said. “It’s more based on an often overlapping Venn diagram of how do you counter threats from the outside world and your own people.”
But Beijing might not be the savior Tehran imagines. Writing in Foreign Policy in December 2020, Wang Xiyue—a former prisoner of the Iranian regime—argued that China would not sacrifice the prospect of improved relations with the United States to cozy up to Iran. “Even if Iran is more than a mere pawn, in Beijing’s view it is ultimately dispensable,” he wrote.
Bradley Bowman and Zane Zovak, writing in Foreign Policy, believe it’s a relationship Washington should keep a close eye on.