China and Iran vow to work together for peace amid Israel-Gaza war
- Communist Party international department chief Liu Jianchao meets several senior Iranian politicians during visit to Middle Eastern country
- Beijing says it supports Tehran in its efforts to maintain regional stability, while Iran pledges to strengthen cooperation to address crisis
They included Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, secretary of the Expediency Discernment Council of Iran, an administrative assembly that plays an advisory role to the head of state, and Ghodrat Ali Heshmatian, the chairman of Iran’s House of Parties, a government-funded organisation aimed at minimising differences between the country’s registered political parties.
During Liu’s meeting with Heshmatian, he said Beijing would like to “strengthen communication and cooperation” with Tehran and support it to “maintain regional peace and stability, and firmly defend international justice”.
Iran is believed to be a key military and financial backer of Hamas but has denied any involvement in the group’s sudden assault on Israel on October 7, which ignited the war in Gaza.
Tehran has backed other regional enemies of Israel, such as Hezbollah, a militant group and political party in Lebanon. It is also a key ally of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad government.
Zhai Jun, Beijing’s special envoy to the Middle East, has made several trips to the region but has yet to visit Iran.
Beijing has stepped up its engagement with Tehran at the semi-official level.
This followed a trip by Wang Di, China’s head diplomat for West Asian and North African affairs, to Tehran in early November and Chinese Premier Li Qiang’s meeting with Iranian First Vice-President Mohammad Mokhber in late October.
Earlier this year, Iran became the ninth member of the SCO, a security and economic grouping that includes Russia, China, India, Pakistan and four ex-Soviet Central Asian states – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to work with Iran on multilateral alliances during his last meeting with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in August on the sidelines of the Brics summit in Johannesburg.
China has been a crucial trading partner and oil buyer for Iran, which has been sanctioned by the United States and European powers. China has been Iran’s biggest trading partner for the past 10 consecutive years, according to the Chinese commerce ministry.