IRNA – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's presence in the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit is in fact a defeat for the US adopted policies and strategies against Tehran, a Chinese official said on Sunday.


Although Iran maintains just an observer status in the SCO, the country is closely cooperating with Russia, China and other member states in the bloc, Chen Xinhui, Secretary General of Association of China Arabic Culture Exchange, told the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) in a recent interview.

Xinhui, referring to the SCO summit slated for June 9-10, said that President Rouhani is expected to hold talks with officials of the participating countries to explore ways to widen cooperation between Iran and the SCO member states in the areas of security and economy.

Describing participation of the Iranian president in the SCO forthcoming summit as important, the Chinese official said Beijing and Tehran, before other things, should cooperate more on implementing the new Silk Road projects or projects related to the 'One Belt, One Road' initiative which was introduced by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013.

The Iranian president, while in China, can hold important negotiations with its counterparts from different world countries about the issues of peace, economy and energy, Xinhui said.

Referring to Iran as an important and influential country in the Middle East region, he said any move by the US and Israel against the Iran Deal or any measures aimed at putting the country under sanctions is wrong and unilateral.

US President Donald Trump announced his decision about the Iran Deal on May 8 and withdrew his country unilaterally from the international agreement. Many world powers, including Russia, China, and the European Union (EU) are against Trump's decision.

The reality is that Washington and Tel Aviv are trying to block Iran's path to development and progress, and the economic growth in particular, Xinhui said.

He went on to say that China, Russia and the countries in Central Asia are after peace, development and security and also after cooperation with Iran and other regional nations in these areas.

China, Russia and the Central Asian countries do not let regional stability and security be threatened by wrong strategies, he added.

It is clear that the US disloyalty and the move by the country and Israel against the July 2015 Iran nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), will solely build up tensions in the Middle East, and what makes the cooperation between the Central Asian countries important is that they should be determined to counter wrong strategies against the region.

Iranian president will take part in the SCO upcoming summit at the invitation of his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.