September 23, 2014
High-Profile Naval Visit Belies China’s Low-Profile Approach to Iran
Two Chinese warships paid a port call to Iran over the weekend, in advance of a four-day joint naval exercise with the Iranian navy that was reportedly to begin Monday. The visit highlights China’s ties with Iran, at a time when the outcome of international negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program remains uncertain.
As those negotiations resume, China seems to be the least concerned of all the parties about their outcome. This apparent indifference is understandable: Iran is physically distant from China; has not threatened China directly or through supporting terrorism targeting China; and is not China’s only source of Middle Eastern oil. In sum, Iran is not a vital national interest for China, making Beijing’s Iran policy fluid, flexible and susceptible to outside influence.
China does not want Iran to obtain or even pursue nuclear weapons, as doing so could raise the prospect of a war in the Middle East that would threaten China’s energy supplies and decrease its trade and investment opportunities. Iran’s acquisition of nuclear weapons could also lead additional countries beyond the Persian Gulf to seek them, including countries of greater security concern to Beijing, like Japan and South Korea. However, China opposes using force or severe sanctions to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapons capacity.
More from CNAS
-
CNAS Insights | America Isn’t Ready for a Drone War
Commentary
This week, U.S. personnel near El Paso, Texas, tested a high-energy laser as part of their mission to shoot down cartel drones along the southern border. The resulting confusi...
By Stacie Pettyjohn & Molly Campbell
-
Commentary
Defense / Indo-Pacific Security
Trump’s NATO DilemmaThis article was originally published in Foreign Affairs. Last November, Matthew Whitaker, the U.S. ambassador to NATO, startled a gathering of European officials at the Berl...
By Sara Moller
-
Video
Indo-Pacific Security / Transatlantic Security
Top Experts Decode India-U.S. Trade Deal | Questions Loom Over Russian Oil Imports, $500Bn InvestmentIn this episode of India Ascends, amid US President Donald Trump's claim that India has agreed to halt purchases of Russian oil, New Delhi has reiterated that ensuring energy ...
By Daniel Silverberg
-
What to Expect From U.S., Iran Talks Friday in Oman?
Video
Bloomberg's Becca Wasser & Wayne Sanders state they are not optimistic when discussing what they expect from the US and Iran when both countries speak Friday in Oman. They sug...
By Becca Wasser
