TEHRAN – Reaffirming its traditional friendly ties with Iran, China said on Monday that its relationship with Tehran and the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries are not directed against “any third party”.

"China and Iran enjoy traditional friendship. The GCC countries and Iran are all China’s friends, and neither China-GCC relations nor China-Iran relations are targeted at any third party," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a regular news briefing.

"China supports the GCC countries in improving relations with Iran based on the principle of good-neighborly friendship, conducting win-win cooperation with Iran and jointly promoting the development and stability in the Persian Gulf," he added, according to Press TV.

Wang voiced his country’s willingness to continue to play a constructive role in this regard. He also reiterated that China is ready to increase interaction with Iran to make new progress in relations between the two countries.

Tehran and Beijing have signed a plan for comprehensive cooperation, which they started implementing early this year, he said, adding, "China will work with Iran for the sound and steady growth of practical cooperation."

The remarks by Wang came as China’s Vice Premier Hu Chunhua made a trip to Tehran on Monday at the head of a delegation.

The Foreign Ministry official said the vice premier’s visit to Iran will play a positive role in deepening comprehensive strategic partnership.

Iran and China signed a landmark 25-year comprehensive strategic partnership in March 2021 in defiance of the United States’ unilateral sanctions.

The deal officially documents the Sino-Iranian Comprehensive Strategic Partnership that had been announced during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Tehran in 2016. It sets the outlines of the two countries’ cooperation in political, cultural, security, defense, regional, and international domains for the next 25 years.

The spokesperson further pointed to the importance of a recently-held China-GCC Summit, saying the two sides issued a joint statement and adopted a 2023-2027 action plan for strategic dialogue.

"The development of relations between China and the GCC countries is aimed at deepening bilateral practical cooperation in various sectors and delivering benefits to the people of both sides," Wang stated.

The remarks come in the wake of a joint statement issued at end of China-GCC summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Friday, in which the leaders affirmed their support for all peaceful efforts, including the initiative and endeavors of the United Arab Emirates, to reach a peaceful solution to the issue of the three islands through bilateral negotiations.

In reaction to the joint statement, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian on Saturday once again reaffirmed that the three islands of Abu Musa and Greater and Lesser Tunbs in the Persian Gulf are “inseparable” and “eternal” parts of the country's territory, emphasizing that Tehran will never compromise on its territorial integrity.