TEHRAN – Iran’s ambassador to China has said a new chapter in relations between Tehran and Beijing, which has coincided with the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution and the Chinese economic reform, will flourish more rapidly than ever.

“In addition to economic ties, the Tehran-Beijing cooperation in other areas is also expanding rapidly,” Mohammad Keshavarz-Zadeh said on Wednesday, speaking with IRNA.

Describing China as a big and strong country which has great potential in different fields, he said Iran must avail itself of such capacities in order to develop quickly.

“The authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran unanimously believe that we can have extensive relations with China in the current circumstances and one of my duties is to take their views into consideration in order to make use of China’s potentialities,” the envoy remarked.

Keshavarz-Zadeh, who was named Iran’s ambassador to Beijing last month, also praised China for supporting the 2015 nuclear agreement, saying the Chinese played an important role in clinching the international agreement.

“China has always supported BARJAM (the Persian name for the nuclear deal) and it seems that such trend will continue… We hope we can reap the benefits of BARJAM with China’s support,” he stated.

Back in May 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew his country from the nuclear pact and ordered sanctions against Iran despite worldwide criticism.

Meanwhile, Iran has continued to comply with the terms of the deal, which was struck in July 2015 after years of negotiations between Tehran and six world powers, including the U.S., Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany.

MH/PA