On September 18, CIIDS held a roundtable with representatives from Iranian think tanks. Abolfazl Amouei, Special Assistant to the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament for International Affairs; Seyed Mohammad Marandi, Professor, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, University of Tehran; and Majid Shakeri, Member of the Liquidity Committee, Central Bank of Iran, among other Iranian experts, participated alongside CIIDS experts and scholars.

Abolfazl Amouei noted that China and Iran are both ancient civilizations with long histories, yet mutual understanding at the societal level remains insufficient. To some extent, negative portrayals in Western media have contributed to perceptual biases on both sides, therefore, it is necessary to advance mutual understanding and trust through academic exchanges and people-to-people interactions. He also stressed that Iran has the capability to safeguard its own security and looks forward to China playing a more active role in promoting peace and development in the Middle East, while expressing the hope that China and Iran will further deepen pragmatic cooperation.

Chinese experts responded that China has consistently sought to resolve differences through dialogue and advocate the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security. China’s strategic focus in the Middle East is to achieve long-term stability through cooperation and connectivity, and, under the open and inclusive framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, China promotes common   development across the region.

Both sides agreed that cooperation can be expanded in areas such as think tank research, public communication, and people-to-people exchanges, with a view to further consolidate the social and public foundation of China-Iran relations.

The roundtable was moderated by CIIDS Vice President Feng Wei. In his concluding remarks, he said the discussion provided a candid platform for exchanges between Chinese and Iranian scholars, not only helping   to enhance mutual understanding, but also broadening the Middle East perspective of the “Understanding China, Understanding the World” undertaking. CIIDS will continue to make full use of its role as a think tank platform to promote China-Iran cooperation across such fields as politics, economy, and culture, and to contribute to regional peace and development.

Wu Bingbing, Director of the Center for Middle East Studies at Peking University, Xie Maosong, Director of the CIIDS Committee on Chinese Civilization and the Chinese Path, and other experts and scholars from CIIDS and partner institutions attended the roundtable.