The appointment of Iranian Parliament Speaker Qalibaf as special envoy for Chinese affairs is directly linked to the failure of US President Donald Trump’s attempts to persuade Beijing to pressure Tehran during his recent official visit to China. The Iranian announcement, coming just two days after the conclusion of the (Trump-Xi summit), reflects Tehran’s swift exploitation of China’s steadfast position to bolster its strategic partnership. Tehran is attempting to change the rules of the game, as Trump’s visit to China prompted Iran to reassess its strategy. It appointed Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf to handle communication with Beijing in order to salvage the situation and ensure that China does not abandon it as an economic partner.
The connection between the two events Trump’s visit to China and the appointment of the new Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, as the official responsible for Iranian-Chinese relations, can be summarized by understanding several Iranian motives. These include preempting and countering American pressure and the failure of American efforts to address it. Trump visited Beijing to urge Chinese President Xi Jinping to reduce purchases of Iranian oil and to press for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Despite this, the visit did not yield any American breakthrough or clear Chinese concessions to Tehran. In fact, Beijing criticized a draft American resolution against Iran at the Security Council. Iran responded swiftly by appointing Qalibaf as an immediate step to mitigate the impact of the US-China summit and to build a joint political and security bulwark with Beijing against Washington’s sanctions. In addition to sending coded political and sovereign messages to Washington, the appointment of a figure of the stature of the Iranian Parliament Speaker, with the direct support of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and the blessing of Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, demonstrates that the China file is now being managed from the highest levels of the sovereign authority. For the Chinese side, Qalibaf’s appointment reflects the Iranian regime’s utmost seriousness in dealing with the commitments of the (25-year strategic partnership) between the two countries.
As for the reasons behind Iran’s specific choice of Qalibaf to manage the file with Beijing, he possesses unique advantages that made him the most suitable choice to manage communication channels with China at this time. Among these advantages is his role as the chief nuclear negotiator, holding the nuclear negotiation file and managing indirect talks with Washington. Qalibaf links international diplomatic solutions with the Chinese security umbrella. In addition to his military and security background, as a former commander in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, his direct coordination regarding maritime security, energy supplies, and financial circumvention of US and Western sanctions against Tehran is facilitated. Iran’s appointment of Qalibaf aims to fill the strategic void left by the assassination of his predecessor Ali Larijani, in a March 2026 airstrikes. This necessitated the appointment of an influential figure with similar or even greater authority to bypass bureaucratic hurdles. Iran’s stated rationale for his appointment is the need to move towards a new world order. Immediately after his appointment, Qalibaf declared on his official social media accounts that: the world is on the cusp of a new order, and the future belongs to the countries of the Global South. This statement underscores Tehran’s view that maintaining a strong partnership with Beijing is a fundamental pillar for breaking American unilateral hegemony.
On the other hand, US President Donald Trump’s historic visit to Beijing in May 2026 had a direct impact on all balances in the Middle East, and the Gulf in particular. The outcomes focused on containing military escalation with Iran, securing vital energy routes, and reshaping regional alliances. This coincided with Trump’s announcement that Chinese President Xi Jinping had offered to contribute to ensuring freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and to exert pressure to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Washington attempted to use sanctions and tariffs to pressure Beijing, leveraging its economic influence (as the largest importer of Iranian oil) to compel Tehran to adhere to a ceasefire and de-escalate tensions. China implicitly agreed to this, as de-escalation represents a shared interest for all parties. China relies on the Middle East to secure approximately half of its energy needs and fears disruption to its supply chains. Here, these US-China understandings resulted in (reducing the level of geopolitical risks) in the Middle East, which had a positive impact on the stability of global oil markets and calmed investors’ fears of a full-scale regional war breaking out.
On the other hand, the dimensions of Trump’s visit to China coincided with a broader American strategy to offer massive defense and technology deals to Gulf states, such as (Saudi Arabia and the UAE), in the fields of (artificial intelligence and air defense). Through these deals, Washington sought to establish an indirect veto to prevent the expansion of Chinese companies into the Middle East’s critical infrastructure. Saudi Arabia and the UAE concluded massive technology deals with leading American technology companies, such as (NVIDIA and AMD), to establish advanced data centers and build a leading digital infrastructure. Washington attempted to impose further technological controls as an indirect veto against Middle Eastern and Gulf countries. Through these technological partnerships, Washington aimed to monopolize superior hardware and chips and connect critical infrastructure projects in the Gulf to Western and American systems, effectively limiting the expansion of Chinese companies in the region’s highly sensitive sectors, according to long-term American plans. Therefore, the available options for the countries of the region are to pursue a policy of diversifying partnerships and a diplomacy of balance between the great powers. The US-China presidential summit reinforced the conviction in Middle Eastern capitals that the international system is moving towards a (controlled multipolarity), compelling them to adopt a pragmatic and flexible policy. This scenario has led the countries of the region to adopt flexible policies that balance maintaining security and military partnerships with the United States and expanding economic and investment cooperation with China without fully aligning with one pole against the other. The Gulf states, in particular, have adopted a (pragmatic approach) based on the principle of diversifying partnerships, maintaining their traditional security and military ties with Washington while simultaneously expanding trade and investment with Beijing.
Consequently, the US-China presidential summits have solidified the conviction among Middle Eastern countries that the global system is moving towards a controlled multipolarity, making absolute alliances costly and necessitating the adoption of flexible diplomatic paths that safeguard the region’s interests and support its development plans. In response, Iran appointed Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf as the new official responsible for its relations with Beijing. This appointment was seen as a direct reaction to, or a causal link to, Iran and US President Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing. This new Iranian appointment is viewed in political circles as a broader strategic move aimed at unifying institutional efforts, managing relations with its Chinese partner, and securing strategic and economic support for Iran amidst current regional tensions. Trump’s trip to China and Washington’s new policies toward the Middle East and the Gulf have also prompted fundamental changes in the policies of the Gulf states (Saudi Arabia and the UAE), leading them to adopt a balanced diplomacy strategy. This flexible policy aims to strengthen security and technological partnerships with the US, capitalize on artificial intelligence deals with Washington, and expand economic cooperation with China, without fully aligning with one power against another in the current international competition.
