Iran, China vow to boost military, defense cooperation

TEHRAN, Iran

Iran and China on Wednesday reaffirmed their commitment to bolster military and defense cooperation to counter what they see as “expansionist policies” of their common foe – Washington.

In his meeting with visiting Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi vowed to bolster cooperation with China, terming relations between them as “strategic”.

In a swipe at the US, Raisi said “confronting unilateralism” and paving the road for “stability and order” was possible through “cooperation of independent and like-minded powers”.

Wei arrived in Tehran early on Tuesday for a visit deemed significant for Iran-China relations.

Both countries have developed close ties in recent years, the highlight of which has been their 25-year strategic cooperation agreement signed in 2021, which covers a wide gamut of areas.

At the same time, their relations with the US have been marked by hostility and tensions.

Raisi told the Chinese official that Iran’s policy was to expand long-term strategic relations with Beijing “regardless of international developments and based on mutual political trust,” while calling the implementation of the long-term comprehensive cooperation agreement a “priority.”

Wei, for his part, noted that stronger ties between Iran and China would provide security, “particularly in the current critical and tense situation,” saying unilateralism “prevents sustainable economic growth.”

Earlier in the day, Wei held wide-ranging talks with his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Reza Ashtiani, during which they discussed ways to boost military and defense cooperation between the two sides.

The Iranian defense minister said the “rise in global security crises” was due to “expansionist and hegemonic policies of the West and the US,” while stressing the need to counter it through “multilateralism.”

“Common security challenges and threats can be resolved through interaction between independent countries that oppose the process of unilateralism in the world,” Ashtiani asserted.

He further said that Iran's “strategic policy” in the Persian Gulf region is based on the “formation of indigenous and endogenous security,” calling for security talks between the regional countries.

During his visit, Wei also held talks with Iran’s chief of army staff, Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, in which the two officials discussed closer cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries.

Pertinently, Iran and China have held a series of joint military drills in regional waters in recent years, most recently in January, when the Chinese Navy sent a missile destroyer, a supply ship, shipborne helicopters, and 40 marines to participate in the maneuvers in the northern Indian Ocean.

There had been speculation about Iran allowing China to have military bases on its strategic islands under the 25-year comprehensive cooperation agreement, but the reports were dismissed by Tehran.

Cooperation between the two sides has increased amid the stalemate over the 2015 nuclear deal. China is one of the signatories to the deal between Iran and world powers.

Importantly, Wei’s Tehran visit came days after he had a heated telephone conversation with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the first call between them since Joe Biden assumed power last year.