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Iranian foreign minister holds talks in Beijing after surprise visit to G7 summit
- Mohammad Javad Zarif meets his counterpart Wang Yi after tweeting he planned to present a 25-year road map on countries’ strategic partnership
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Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif visited Beijing on Monday after a surprise appearance at the Group of Seven summit in France over the weekend – a move highlighting China’s close relationship with Iran, which is in a stand-off with the US over its nuclear programme.
Zarif tweeted in the afternoon that he had arrived in Beijing after a stopover in Tehran. He said that he planned to present his Chinese hosts with a 25-year road map on the China-Iran comprehensive strategic partnership, which was signed in 2016, and that Tehran would actively contribute to Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Zarif later posted a photo on Twitter of him shaking hands with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse and another picture of a meeting between the Chinese and Iranian delegations.
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The Chinese foreign ministry also confirmed Wang’s meeting with Zarif.
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Zarif’s visit to Beijing came as countries around the world are divided over their policies on Iran. Last year, the United States withdrew from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action that puts limits on Iran’s nuclear programme. It followed that in April with threats of sanctions on countries that continued to buy oil from Iran. Washington also sanctioned Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Zarif.
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