China and Iran Bolster Cooperation

China and Iran agreed on Sunday to continue to boost bilateral relations and cooperation. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Iranian counterpart Mohammed Javad Zarif in Tehran to explore how the two nations could strengthen ties.

Wang said that the two countries should jointly build what he called, “one belt and one road.” China proposed the Belt and Road initiatives in 2013. These include a new “silk road” of multilateral free trade agreements and joint infrastructure projects. These agreements and projects are intended to integrate the region from China to Europe through Central Asia. The proposed Maritime Silk Road would unite the region from the Strait of Malacca to India, the Middle East and East Africa.

The foreign ministers met even as Iran continues to negotiate a comprehensive nuclear agreement with the United States, Britain, China, France, Russia and Germany. During the meeting, Zarif thanked China for its support of Iran’s nuclear program. The basic framework for a nuclear agreement is due at the end of March. June 30 is the deadline for an actual deal.

China and Iran have close economic ties. China is Iran’s largest purchaser of crude oil. The Asian nation’s oil imports increased nearly 30 percent last year.

The two nations, along with Russia, are forming an anti-West power bloc, making it difficult for the West to deal with Iran’s nuclear program effectively.

Watch for China and Iran to work closer together, even as they form alliances against the West.