Iran International
Ahead of Donald Trump’s arrival in Beijing, Iranian officials rejected suggestions that US pressure could weaken Iran-China ties amid growing speculation over a possible Chinese mediation role in the Iran conflict.
Iranian ambassador to China Abdolreza Rahmani-Fazli wrote Monday on X that relations between Tehran and Beijing “are stronger than any US effort aimed at changing China’s position toward Iran through pressure.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun reinforced that message Monday, saying Beijing’s position remained “clear and consistent” and that the priority should be preventing renewed war and further escalation.
Crucially, Beijing also signaled opposition to any US-led blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, saying such actions were “not in the common interests of the international community.”
Observers viewed last week’s meeting in Beijing between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi as an effort to coordinate positions ahead of the expected Trump-Xi talks.
During the meeting, Wang said China was prepared to play a “greater role” in regional peace efforts and encouraged dialogue between Iran and Persian Gulf Arab states.
Trump pressure Xi over Iran
Western media reports indicate Trump plans to press Xi over China’s economic and strategic ties with Iran, particularly oil purchases and alleged military assistance.
While Trump acknowledged he would raise the issue, he also said before departing for Beijing that he did not believe Xi’s cooperation was strictly necessary to manage the crisis.
Tensions between Washington and Beijing over Iran have intensified in recent weeks following the seizure of a Tehran-linked cargo vessel near the Strait of Hormuz.
In a CNBC interview, Trump criticized what he described as China’s “unexpected support for Iran,” saying he had anticipated greater understanding from Beijing.
Former US ambassador Nikki Haley also alleged on X that the seized vessel was carrying chemicals intended for Iran’s missile program, presenting the case as evidence of growing Chinese support for Tehran.
China’s expanding regional role
At a May 8 press conference in Beijing, Rahmani-Fazli said Tehran and Beijing had agreed to advance Xi’s four-point regional security initiative.
The proposal emphasizes peaceful coexistence, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and adherence to international law as foundations for stability in the Persian Gulf and the broader Middle East.
Iranian outlet Khabar Online described the initiative as part of Beijing’s broader effort to position itself as a major diplomatic mediator in the region while distancing itself from what it called US unilateralism.
The outlet argued that the approach could strengthen Iran’s negotiating position and increase pressure on Washington to accept at least some Iranian demands.
Rahmani-Fazli said Monday that any future agreement with Washington “must inevitably include guarantees from major powers” and ultimately be raised at the UN Security Council.
Could China become a mediator?
So far, China has largely pursued a cautious approach to the confrontation between Iran and the United States, avoiding direct involvement while calling for de-escalation.
Still, some Iranian analysts believe Beijing may now be willing to take on a more active diplomatic role.
Former Iranian ambassador to China Mohammad Keshavarzzadeh told Shargh newspaper that Chinese officials appeared interested in facilitating negotiations and reducing tensions.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei also suggested Beijing could use Trump’s visit to warn against what Tehran describes as unlawful US pressure and its consequences for regional and global stability.
At the same time, some Iranian analysts believe China may be uneasy with Tehran’s threats to restrict access through the Strait of Hormuz.
Former Iranian diplomat Kourosh Ahmadi told Nour News that Beijing’s primary concern remains preserving open trade routes essential to its export-driven economy.
According to Ahmadi, this could push China to place greater emphasis on protecting the legal status of international waterways and opposing any disruption in Hormuz that might set precedents elsewhere.
Disputes over Chinese support for Iran
Last month, Trump called on Xi not to send weapons to Tehran and claimed China had offered assurances on the matter.
In recent days, the US State Department sanctioned three Chinese satellite companies accused of assisting Iranian military operations by providing imagery linked to Iranian military activity. Beijing rejected the allegations.
The US Treasury Department also sanctioned several companies in mainland China and Hong Kong accused of helping supply weapons-related materials to Iran.
Beijing does not recognize US sanctions on Iranian oil exports and has instructed domestic companies not to comply with American restrictions targeting so-called “teapot” refineries purchasing Iranian crude.
The moves underscore growing US efforts to pressure Beijing over its ties with Tehran ahead of the Trump-Xi meeting.
Tehran’s unveiling of a towering statue depicting the Roman Emperor Valerian kneeling before pre-Islamic Persian King Shapur I has renewed criticism of the Islamic Republic’s appeal to nationalist sentiment following the June war with Israel.
For over forty years, the theocracy purged ancient Persian history from schoolbooks, replacing it with post-Islamic narratives. But after the 12-day conflict with Israel, officials have turned to the distant pre-Islamic past to rally a divided society.
From murals of ancient kings and soldiers to patriotic songs added to Shi’ite mourning ceremonies performed before Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Tehran now embraces imagery once deemed heretical by its own revolutionary ethos.
'Kneel before Iran' campaign
Tehran’s Revolution (Enghelab) Square was the scene of an unusual spectacle on Friday as officials unveiled a massive bronze statue depicting Roman Emperor Valerian kneeling in submission before Sassanid King Shapur I, commemorating Iran’s victory at the Battle of Edessa (260 AD).
The event was held under the slogan “Kneel before Iran,” part of what authorities describe as a campaign to project “national unity and historical pride” following the June war with Israel.
Tehran Mayor Alireza Zakani, a staunch ultraconservative, said on X: “Enmity with Great Iran can only end in kneeling before this historic nation.”
Municipal official Davood Goodarzi said the installation would be accompanied by visual displays depicting “other victories of Iranians over foreign aggressors,” including the defeat of British forces by local commander Rais-Ali Delvari, Mirza Kuchak Khan’s resistance against Russian troops, and Surena’s triumph over Rome at the Battle of Carrhae in 53 BCE.
The goal, Goodarzi said, is “strengthening concepts such as national dignity, social unity, and Iranian identity.”
The statue, he said, would remain temporarily at Revolution Square before being moved to a city gateway “where it will stand as the first emblem of Iran before diplomats and foreign visitors.”
Unveiled women were allowed to attend the unveiling ceremony—an uncommon scene at events organized by Tehran’s ultra-hardline municipality.
The turn to the pre-Islamic past
The sharp reversal also recalls remarks once made by Khamenei. In a 2011 speech, he asserted that “all the great military victories of this nation came after Islam,” dismissing pre-Islamic accounts as “things that are not documented.”
In 1987, he had said that prophets triumphed over kings such as Cyrus and that “nothing remains of these monarchs in history but names remembered with derision.”
Nevertheless, pro-government social media accounts have now gone so far as to circulate posters equating Khamenei himself with Shapur, showing him standing with a staff as Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump kneel before him. The caption reads: “You will kneel before Iran.”
'Hypocrisy'
Pro-government figures have hailed the move as a patriotic success. Conservative political reporter Hossein Saremi posted: “Today’s grand Iranian gathering showed that people and the state share one essence: Iran itself. Nothing can take our homeland away.”
Others, however, called the spectacle “hypocrisy.” Journalist Gholamhossein Pashaei wrote on X: “Every year you close Pasargadae to stop people from celebrating Cyrus Day, yet you unveil Shapur’s statue in Enghelab Square with drums and fireworks during Fatimiyya (mourning period)!”
Dissident commentator Hamid Asafi called the ceremony “a perfect snapshot of the Islamic Republic’s contradictions.”
On Telegram he wrote: “A week ago they closed Cyrus’s tomb out of fear of the crowds, and now they glorify Shapur in the same breath. The Islamic Republic fears living history but poses for selfies with its corpse.”
He added: “They know people no longer respond to rosaries and sermons. That’s why they’ve brought history back to the stage—in a controlled costume. If they can’t erase the past, they’ll try to own it.”
The irony deepened as UNESCO formally recognized Cyrus’s Charter as one of the earliest human-rights documents.
President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote on X: “Iran, the cradle of dialogue, justice, and coexistence, can still inspire peace today.”
Users swiftly replied, questioning how such pride could coexist with a government that blocks access to Cyrus’s tomb each year to those wishing to visit it on his birthday.