General Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of China’s Central Military Commission (CMC), meets with visiting Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami in Beijing on the afternoon of Sept. 7. (Photo by Li Yinghui)

General Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of China’s Central Military Commission (CMC), meets with visiting Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami in Beijing on the afternoon of Sept. 7. (Photo by Li Yinghui)

BEIJING, Sep. 10 (ChinaMil) - General Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of China’s Central Military Commission (CMC), met with Brigadier General Amir Hatami, defense minister of Iran, in Beijing on the afternoon of Sept. 7. General Wei Fenghe, China’s state councilor and defense minister, held talks with Brigadier General Amir Hatami in Beijing on the same day.

Zhang Youxia said that the friendship between China and Iran has stood the test of the complex international situation and the two countries have formed a deep feeling of sharing weal and woe. In 2016, President Xi Jinping and President Hassan Rouhani jointly announced the establishment of the comprehensive strategic partnership. Since then, the strategic mutual trust between the two countries has continued to improve, and pragmatic cooperation in various fields within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative has been solidly promoted.

China always views the relationship between the two countries from a strategic perspective. Zhang hopes that the two sides can continue to support each other on major issues concerning their core interests and jointly contribute to the world peace and regional stability. China also attaches importance to the development of the bilateral military relations. In recent years, the cooperation between the two militaries in various fields has developed steadily and has achieved tangible results. China is willing to work with Iran to continuously deepen strategic mutual trust and push the relations between the two militaries to a new level, said Zhang.

Being a legally binding international agreement recognized by the United Nations, the Iran nuclear deal framework contributes to maintenance of the peace and stability in the Middle East and the global nuclear non-proliferation regime. Therefore it should continue to be effectively implemented. China is willing to work with relevant parties including Iran to achieve this goal, Zhang Youxia added.

Hatami said that the two countries share a long history of friendship and a promising future of relations between the two countries and the two militaries. The Iranian side thanks China for its support to Iran on issues concerning its core interests and is willing to work with China to fully implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, strengthen pragmatic cooperation in various fields, and promote the continuous development of relations between the two countries and the two militaries.