China keeping distance from Iran despite strong economic ties: Report

China appears to be maintaining a cautious distance from Iran despite being Tehran’s most important economic partner, according to an MBN report. The article notes limited public engagement between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian at recent international gatherings. It also highlights that China-Iran relations remain largely focused on energy, trade and economic interests, despite a 25-year cooperation agreement signed in 2021.

IANS 18 September 2026 08:11

While China is Iran’s most important economic partner, Beijing has shown little interest in linking its broader Middle East strategy to Tehran, according to an article in the MBN news website. The article highlights that during the BRICS+ summit held in Delhi last week, President Xi Jinping kept a distance from Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian with no public interaction between the two on the occasion. “Xi spent less than a day in India, meeting with his host, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and briefly courting Global South support for his security governance initiative.

There are no reports that he spoke to Pezeshkian. It was a notable display of distance between two countries often portrayed as strategic partners,” observes the article by Jim Snyder. While MBN’s inaugural 'Great Powers Index' places Iran closer to China than any other country in the MENA region. The relationship is more complicated than the data suggests, the article further states. It cites experts as saying that China doesn’t want to appear to be particularly cozy with Iran at this time. In contrast, Xi has been much more overt in extending support to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The distancing by the Chinese President was also evident last month at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. “Xi held formal, photographed meetings with Putin, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov. Pezeshkian got a brief sideline meeting and considerably less attention,” the article states. It highlights that the ties between Beijing and Tehran have always been driven by economics.

China got cheap Iranian oil, while Iran got badly needed revenue and access to Chinese goods. Iran sends more exports to China than to any other country and relies heavily on Chinese imports. But it’s not a relationship of equals: the Islamic Republic accounts for less than 1 percent of China’s global trade. The article also underscores that although China and Iran signed a 25-year cooperation agreement in 2021, covering energy, infrastructure, trade and security cooperation, there have been very little investment flows between the two countries.

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