Iranian President to Visit China This Week on Xi’s Invite

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will make a state visit to China this week on the invitation of Xi Jinping, signaling a strengthening of ties between the two countries as tensions with the US escalate.
The visit is planned for Feb. 14 to 16, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement Sunday, without giving more details. China sent Vice Premier Hu Chunhua to meet Raisi in Tehran in December, which was seen back then as a sign that Beijing is keeping its distance as the Middle Eastern nation dealt with widespread unrest. Xi didn’t stop in Iran during his visit to Saudi Arabia that month, unlike during a previous regional tour in 2016, and a joint statement with Gulf countries drew condemnation from Tehran. China is a vital trade partner for Iran as it remains the only customer of oil exports heavily sanctioned by the US. Last year, the two countries launched the implementation phase of a 25-year bilateral agreement designed to enable billions of dollars of investment in the Persian Gulf country, part of China’s effort to raise its profile in the oil-rich region. Iran is also increasingly building closer ties with Russia, which China counts as a strategic partner. Tehran and Moscow have made efforts to deepen relations to counter pressure from the US and its allies. While the Kremlin denies using Iranian equipment, it has relied increasingly on drones from Tehran as it burns through its own stockpiles of missiles in attacks on Ukraine. - Bloomberg