Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was awarded the title of “honorary professor” at China’s elite Peking University on Wednesday during a high-profile state trip.
University secretary Hao Ping awarded Raisi for his efforts to strengthen ties between the two countries, according to the Mehr news agency, which monitors Middle East news.
In this photo released by the official website of the Iranian presidential office, President Ebrahim Raisi, left, shakes hands with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping at an official welcoming ceremony in Beijing, Tuesday, April 14. February 2023. (Iranian Presidency Office via AP)
Raisi addressed professors and students and told them that shaping a new world order requires a distance from unilateralism, a veiled reference to the United States and its Western allies.
Hi highlighted the historic bilateral relationship and drew comparisons between the ancient Silk Road and China’s Belt and Road Initiative, the massive infrastructure project to connect Asia with Europe.
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Peking University, founded in Beijing in 1898, is considered one of the best universities in China and ranks among the top 50 schools globally.
Thursday marked the end of Raisi’s visit to Beijing, during which the two sides affirmed close economic and political ties and their rejection of Western standards of human rights and democracy.
FILE – In this photo released by the Xinhua News Agency, visiting Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, right, walks with Chinese President Xi Jinping after reviewing an honor guard during a welcome ceremony in The Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on Tuesday, February 14, 2019. 2023. (Yan Yan/Xinhua via AP, File)
Most of the China-Iran joint statement emphasized strong political and economic ties, the pursuit of peace and justice in the Middle East, and denuclearization despite Tehran’s alleged campaign to produce atomic weapons.
In an earlier meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Raisi expressed his support for China’s crackdown on democracy in Hong Kong and the demand for an autonomous democratic Taiwan.
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China and Iran present themselves, along with Moscow, as checks and balances on US power, and have provided tacit and, in the case of Iran, material support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“China supports Iran in safeguarding national sovereignty” and “resisting unilateralism and intimidation,” Xi said in a statement carried by Chinese state television on its website.
Xi and Raisi attended the signing of 20 cooperation agreements, including on trade and tourism, the Chinese government announced. Those come on top of a 25-year strategy agreement signed in 2021 to cooperate on developing oil, industry and other fields.
China is one of the largest buyers of Iranian oil and a major source of investment.
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Iran has struggled for years under trade and financial sanctions imposed by Washington and other Western governments. The US government cut off Iran’s access to the network connecting global banks in 2018.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
