China Reaffirms Commitment to Strengthening Ties with Iran

By Staff, Agencies

Chinese Special Envoy for Middle East Affairs Zhai Jun has reaffirmed Beijing’s interest in strengthening relations with Tehran during talks with Ali Bagheri Kani, deputy secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.

Zhai stressed the importance of pursuing political solutions through a rational and practical approach, calling for efforts to restore regional stability and development as soon as possible.

The meeting took place during Zhai’s regional tour of Iran, Oman and Saudi Arabia this month, as Beijing intensifies its diplomatic efforts to ease tensions in West Asia.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had previously urged all parties involved in the regional conflict to prioritize political solutions over renewed military action during separate meetings with Iranian and Saudi national security officials.

Chinese President Xi Jinping also expressed Beijing’s readiness to work with African countries to address the repercussions of the Middle East conflict.

China’s diplomatic engagement with Tehran comes as Iran explores additional channels for mediation with Washington, with Beijing and Muscat emerging as potential participants alongside existing diplomatic efforts involving Qatar and Pakistan.

Iranian official Rahimi highlighted Oman’s longstanding role in facilitating negotiations between Tehran and Washington over the past decade, saying Iran trusted Muscat’s mediation efforts and had consistently supported them.

He also pointed to Iran’s strategic political relations with China and Beijing’s previous role in mediating between Tehran and Riyadh, describing the proposed China-Oman channel as having “advantages that can be relied upon.”

However, Rahimi clarified that contacts between Iran and China had so far been limited to preliminary discussions, denying reports that a trilateral meeting had taken place in Beijing.

He explained that the Sultan of Oman’s visit to China coincided with Ali Bagheri Kani’s visit, but said the overlapping schedules did not indicate that a joint meeting had been held.

While describing West Asia as a region of major strategic importance to Beijing, Rahimi said China had not yet decided whether to assume a direct mediating role between Tehran and Washington. Its involvement could instead remain limited to providing advice and guidance.