Chinese Defense Minister's Visit to Tehran

Continuing the expansion of military cooperation between Iran and China, Chang Wanquan, the Minister of Defense of the People's Republic of China, arrived in Tehran on Sunday at the head of a delegation for a three-day official visit. According to the official news agency IRNA, Chang Wanquan traveled to Tehran at the official invitation of Hossein Dehghan, Iran's Minister of Defense. The scope of military relations between Iran and China has significantly increased following the Iran nuclear agreement with six world powers, so much so that less than three months after this agreement, the two countries signed a draft military cooperation memorandum. Major General Firouzabadi, the then Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, stated regarding this memorandum: "In these negotiations, the preparation of a strategic defense memorandum between the two countries was discussed, and its details included all defense, training, technical, intelligence, cyber, and terrorism issues." Military relations are always a function of the strategic policies of countries. Iran and China have found multiple grounds and reasons to come closer to each other in line with regional necessities. Xi Jinping, during a visit to Tehran last February, was among the first heads of state to visit Iran seven months after the nuclear agreement. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani announced at a joint press conference after meeting with his Chinese counterpart that a comprehensive 25-year document was being prepared. The joint statement "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the People's Republic of China" outlines a roadmap for the expansion and deepening of Tehran-Beijing cooperation in political, executive, humanitarian and cultural, judicial, security-defense, regional, and international areas in 20 articles. This joint statement was simultaneously published in the capitals of both countries at the end of the official visit of the Chinese president to Tehran. The first article of this statement states: "The parties believe that in conditions where the process of multipolarization of the international system and the globalization of the economy has deepened, the relations between Iran and China have become strategically important, considering each other as important strategic partners and prioritizing the development of relations in their foreign policy." The military relations between Iran and China, beyond strategic benefits for both parties, are particularly significant for China as Iran has become a good customer for Chinese weapons, a crucial area that naturally brings significant benefits to the Chinese economy.