China Tries to Calm U.S. Anxieties About New Pact With Iran

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (R) and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, pose for a picture after signing an agreement in the capital Tehran, on March 27, 2021. AFP

One of China’s most prominent Iran scholars, Fan Hongda from the Shanghai Institute of International Relations, published a column in the Communist Party-controlled English-language newspaper China Daily that appears intended to try and calm fears in the United States and to send the message that Beijing’s recent 25-year strategic cooperation agreement is not intended to challenge the U.S. in any way.

“It is wrong to view the agreement as being targeted at the United States, particularly because China and Iran started discussing the cooperation plan in 2016 when Sino-US relations were still on a relatively positive track,” wrote Fan.

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by Eric Olander

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