Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif meets Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (not pictured) at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, Friday, May 17, 2019. (Thomas Peter/Pool Photo via AP) (Associated Press)BEIJING — Iran’s foreign minister praised his country’s relations with China during talks with his Chinese counterpart in Beijing amid heightened tensions and efforts by Tehran to keep its world markets open following the U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal. “We consider (China) one of our closest partners in the world,” Zarif said in opening remarks at the start of the meeting. Iran wishes to cooperate with China “bilaterally and multilaterally, in order to preserve the interests of our two peoples ... for peace and security,” Zarif said. The Chinese foreign minister pledged to maintain the nuclear deal and work with Iran to eliminate “complicated disturbing factors,” Xinhua said.

Source: Washington Post May 18, 2019 03:00 UTC