Iran wants a “strategic partnership” with China

CHINA COMMANDS a certain mystique in the Middle East. For politicians in Lebanon, broke and on the brink of hyperinflation, it is an ATM waiting to dispense billions if they can only find the passcode. For the regime of Bashir al-Assad in Syria it is a deus ex machina to rebuild a shattered country. Often caricatured, the Middle East is prone to draw caricatures of its own.

On October 1st Hassan Rouhani, the Iranian president, declared a “major step” in Iran’s relations with China. For months the two have been discussing plans for a 25-year “strategic partnership”. But the details remain vague.