The files we follow: Relations between Iran and its neighboring countries; Relations between Iran and the United States; Relations between Iran and the BRICS; Relations between Turkey and the European Union; Relations between Turkey and the BRICS.
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On Monday, June 9, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi received the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Iran, Cong Peiwu in Tehran. Together they discussed the implementation of the 25-year cooperation agreement signed between the two states in March 2021. While Araqchi emphasized Iran’s desire to deepen existing ties with Beijing, Cong praised the “strong ties” the two countries currently enjoy. What are the dynamics of this meeting for Iran, and how does its relationship with China currently constitute a crucial variable for Iranian interests?
The agreement signed in 2021 covered a broad spectrum of issues, involving increased Chinese investment in the telecommunications, energy, and infrastructure sectors, as well as closer ties between security institutions and the defense industry. Iran, for its part, undertook to guarantee long-term energy supplies for China. However, numerous obstacles have limited the expected effects of the agreement, not least the persistence of international sanctions against Tehran. According to the media outlet Iran International, Chinese investments have failed to meet the targets initially announced, and many projects are encountering difficulties in coming to fruition. This is the case with the South Pars (or North Dome) offshore natural gas field shared between Iran and Qatar, which has seen several Chinese investments disappear in 2019. Exploitation of this gas field is of prime importance to Iran, since it accounts for around 70% of the country’s gas production. Tehran launched a $17 billion plan in March 2025 to optimize extraction from the gas field and compensate for the natural drop in reservoir pressure. China has also divested several other infrastructure projects on Iranian territory since that date. All in all, the initial forecast of around $400 billion in Chinese investment in Iran from 2021 onwards has been greatly overestimated. In the still uncertain context of nuclear negotiations with the United States, Iran’s priority interest could therefore be to obtain maximum trade guarantees with China, and secure Beijing’s diplomatic security support at the same time. While Chinese investment in the energy sector represents a considerable economic guarantee for Iran, the growing number of bilateral meetings with China illustrates the importance Teheran attaches to its eastern partner.
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