SHANGHAI: China reaffirmed its opposition to unilateral sanctions by the United States against Iran as the Chinese and Iranian foreign ministers announced the launch of a 25-year cooperation agreement aimed at strengthening economic and political ties. Under the deal, the two countries would strengthen economic and political cooperation.

In a meeting on Friday in the city of Wuxi, in Jiangsu province, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also backed efforts to revive a 2015 nuclear deal between major powers and Iran. China is Iran’s leading trade partner and was one of the biggest buyers of the country’s oil before former US president Donald Trump reimposed sweeping unilateral sanctions in 2018.

China has officially stopped importing oil from Iran, but analysts say Iranian crude is continuing to enter the country disguised as imports from other countries.

A summary of the meeting between Wang and Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian was posted on China’s foreign ministry website on Saturday.

Beijing slams US sanctions on Tehran

Wang, who is also State Councillor, said the US bore primary responsibility for the ongoing difficulties with Iran, having unilaterally withdrawn from a 2015 nuclear deal between the major powers and Iran.

Under the terms of that deal, in return for the lifting of international sanctions, Iran would limit uranium enrichment activity, making it harder to develop nuclear arms — although Tehran denies having plans for nuclear weapons.

Wang said China would firmly support a resumption of negotiations on a nuclear pact. But he said China firmly opposes unilateral sanctions against Iran, political manipulation through topics, including human rights, and interference in the internal affairs of Iran and other regional countries.

The United States reimposed sanctions that badly damaged Iran’s economy after withdrawing from the nuclear pact in 2018, saying the terms did not do enough to curb Iran’s nuclear activities, ballistic missile programme and regional influence.

A year later, Iran began to gradually breach the accord, rebuilding stockpiles of enriched uranium, refining it to higher fissile purity and installing advanced centrifuges to speed up output.

China and Iran, both subject to US sanctions, signed the 25-year cooperation agreement last March, bringing Iran into China’s Belt and Road Initiative, a multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure scheme intended to stretch from East Asia to Europe.

The project aims to significantly expand China’s economic and political influence, and has raised concerns in the United States and elsewhere. The foreign ministry summary said the agreement would deepen Sino-Iranian cooperation in areas, including energy, infrastructure, agriculture, health care and culture, as well as cyber security and cooperation with other countries.

Few details of the secretive deal have been published, but the New York Times reported in 2020 that it would secure a regular supply of oil for China, citing a draft of the agreement leaked to the paper.

Iran and the US remain locked in talks over whether a compromise can be found to renew the deal and dispel fears of a wider Middle East War.

A source close to negotiations said on Friday that many issues remain unresolved.

Wang, who earlier in the week met with several counterparts from Gulf Arab countries concerned about the potential threat from Iran, also said China hopes to set up a dialogue mechanism with Gulf countries to discuss regional security issues. Beijing has long sought to boost ties with Tehran, with Chinese President Xi Jinping describing Iran as “China’s major partner in the Middle East” on a rare visit to the country in 2016.

Published in Dawn, January 16th, 2022