Iran Denies Allegations about 25-Year Cooperation Deal with China

In a statement on Wednesday and in response to a barrage of false claims raised in the cyberspace about the roadmap to 25-year cooperation between Iran and China, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyyed Abbas Mousavi said, “According to a 2016 agreement between the presidents of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the People’s Republic of China, stipulated in the Article VI of the communiqué during the honourable Chinese president’s visit to Tehran, the two countries have explicitly expressed their political determination to promote and deepen the relations strategically and decided to devise a comprehensive 25-year roadmap between the two countries to become the basis for the coherent and all-out expansion of the political and economic relations between Iran and China in the years to come.”

“The preliminary draft of the document has been prepared with the participation of specialized institutions from the two countries and is currently undergoing the negotiation stage. Naturally, after finalization of the negotiations, the document will be submitted to the representatives of people in the Parliament for legal procedures,” the spokesperson noted.

Mousavi also pointed to the “hostile and nervous” reaction from the US Department of State’s spokesperson, adding, “Undoubtedly, the strategic relations between Iran and China that entail mutual key interests for the people of the two countries have enemies who will make every effort for the failure of these negotiations and lack of success of the document.”

He further dismissed as ridiculous the claims about a lease on the Iranian islands in the Persian Gulf, a monopoly on the sale of oil at low prices, or the deployment of armed forces, saying such claims do not even merit a denial.

“Fulfillment of Iran’s national interests has been the only guiding principle for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in devising the strategic document, and the negotiations have been held with utmost carefulness and meticulousness, as the people of Iran will soon observe its results, God willing,” Mousavi noted.

The spokesperson finally expressed hope that the cooperation document would be finalized in the near future, stressing, “Naturally, no other text would be valid before the finalization of negotiations. Therefore, the media are urged to refrain from republishing the texts that are prepared and disseminated with various purposes and objectives.”

Earlier on Tuesday, Mousavi had described Tehran-Beijing relations as significant in a post on his Twitter account.

“The Iran-China Comprehensive Cooperation Plan is a clear-cut road map which fundamentally puts relations between these two important countries on track for the future world, a place where China, as the number-one economic power in the world, and Iran, as a major power in the West Asia region, can enjoy complementary relations independently of traditional and domineering Western powers in a bid to secure their mutual interests and, at the same time, stand up to pressure by bullies.”

“There is no handing over of the Iranian islands, no presence of military forces and no other illusions!” he said.

“The old tactic of spreading lies and false information to receive details and accurate data, which is seriously pursued by enemies that want to harm both nations’ interests, will get nowhere,” Mousavi added.

In remarks on Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said everything about the 25-year cooperation agreement with China is clear and the two countries have nothing to hide about it.

He also noted that Tehran will make the contents of the agreement public.