West News Wire: The Chinese Foreign Ministry has announced that Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will visit China on official business the following week.
According to a statement released by the ministry on Sunday, Raisi will go to China between February 14 and February 16 at the request of Chinese President Xi Jinping.
According to Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency, the three-day trip will involve conversations between Raisi and Xi, a gathering of the two leaders with Iranian and Chinese businesses, and the signing of cooperation agreements between the delegations of the two nations.
According to US publication Politico, which also reported on the impending trip, it is “anticipated to expand relations between the two political and economic allies that are opposed to the US-led Western domination of international affairs.”
Xi and Raisi last met during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit last September in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. During the talks, the Chinese leader said that both Beijing and Tehran had decided to strengthen their strategic partnership.
In December, Chinese Vice President Hu Chunhua visited Iran and met with Raisi, with both sides expressing eagerness to boost bilateral ties further.
China is Iran’s largest trading partner and the main buyer of its oil amid US sanctions on Tehran. According to Iranian data, its exports to China reached $12.6 billion in the last ten months. The country also bought $12.7 billion worth of Chinese goods during the period.
Last year, Iran was formally included in the SCO as a permanent member, and it applied to join BRICS two international organizations in which China and Russia play a major role.
