When President Ebrahim Raisi departed for his landmark visit to China last Tuesday, the first in 20 years for an Iranian president, he stood in front of a large map of Iran with the words “Persian Gulf” written in English and Persian marking the body of water south of Iran’s borders.

For Iran watchers, the message was clear. Just two months prior, China's President Xi Jinping and members of the Gulf Cooperation Council signed a joint statement calling for a “peaceful resolution” between Iran and the United Arab Emirates of three islands — Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb, Abu Musa — in the Persian Gulf currently in control of Iran. The statement clearly irked Iranian authorities, which subsequently summoned the Chinese envoy, a very rare rebuke of an ally Iran is currently leaning toward as it pivots east. Raisi was signaling — both domestically and to Chinese officials — that whatever necessities the country has pushed forward with the eastern pivot, there are issues that are non-negotiable for the Islamic Republic.  

Iran's shift toward the east, however, has nothing to do with three mostly uninhabited islands located near the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, and has everything to do with realizing economic goals from an Eastern ally as investment and trade with Western countries have continued to diminish over the near full collapse of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action due to the US exit in 2018. Raisi’s three-day visit, according to government supporters, was aimed to help implement the Iran-China 25-year Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, an ambitious plan that would bring in hundreds of billions of dollars of investments into Iran with Iranian oil going to China at a discount. Iran’s overall trade with China in 2020 was close to $15 billion, while US-China trade in 2020 was $615 billion.

Whether or not details of the economic pact — some of which have been leaked — ever materialize, supporters have touted the visit more for its symbolism rather than the details. Twenty years ago, President Mohammad Khatami was the last Iranian president to be invited to China on an official visit, the previous meetings between an Iranian and Chinese president took place on the sidelines of regional meetings of the heads of states. Government supporters say that the visit alone signals Iran’s importance in the region.