Iran-China partnership accord sabotages US efforts to isolate Tehran: Analyst

An analyst says the Iran-China comprehensive strategic partnership agreement is a way of telling the United States that “enough is enough” and that Iran cannot be isolated from the world.

“This is an incredibly important agreement that is being reached,” James O'Neill told Press TV on Saturday.

“It’s hugely important, particularly for Iran of course, because it’s a way of telling the world that China does not accept the isolation of Iran from the world community,” he added.

The strategic agreement was signed in Tehran on Saturday by foreign ministers of Iran and China, Mohammad Javad Zarif and Wang Yi, marking a milestone in bilateral relations between the two friendly nations.

The Sino-Iranian comprehensive strategic partnership was initially announced in a joint statement during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Tehran in 2016, but its final draft was delayed due to further discussions over the terms of the partnership plan.

O’Neill further said the agreement is primarily a way of telling the Americans that the relationship between China and Iran has grown stronger regardless of their evil and illegal sanctions, which the US government imposed on Iran after former president Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew Washington from the multilateral Iran nuclear deal, officially recognized as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“It’s an important component of the Belt and Road Initiative," he said, referring to China's global economic effort aimed at reviving the old silk road, which would reunite European and Asian markets. 

He also maintained that the Americans, having withdrawn from the JCPOA and imposed sanctions on Iran on the one hand and being really fearful of China’s rise as the world’s most important economic power on the other hand, have been making every effort to sabotage an agreement between Tehran and Beijing.

Pointing at the overthrow of the former US-backed Shah of Iran in the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the analyst said the United States has never forgiven Iran for the Revolution.

“This is merely the latest in a long, long line of discrimination against Iran by the United States,” he added.

He further explained that the Chinese are saying via the agreement that Iran should not be isolated from the world’s economy, pointing out that other regional countries and Russia have also signaled that they are not going to join US efforts to isolate Iran as a vital part of the world’s economy.

“I think [the agreement] is a way of trying to tell the world that Iran is being treated unjustly,” O’Neill remarked. “They did not accept [Iran’s] isolation by the United States, which is illegal.”

On the future of the Sino-Iranian relations, the analyst said the bilateral ties could only get better over time, with China’s backing of Iran’s position with regard to the JCPOA, while the Europeans have failed to fully recognize Tehran's compliance with the terms of the nuclear agreement.

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