Although thousands of miles apart and having different cultural backgrounds, Beijing and Teheran have a long tradition of friendship, which has been strengthened over the years by bilateral economic cooperation and similar views on regional issues.

This has formed a strong basis for the alignment of their respective development visions. Iran occupies a special niche in the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, and China has an increasingly important position in Iran's "look to the East" policy.

As this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, it is only natural that they should continue to build upon this strong momentum of cooperation. Thus on Saturday, visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif signed a 25-year blueprint to enhance bilateral comprehensive cooperation.

The plan for comprehensive cooperation focuses on tapping the potential in economic and cultural cooperation and charting the course for long-term cooperation. Saeed Khatibzadeh, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, said the document was a road map for trade, economic and transportation cooperation, with a "special focus on the private sectors of both sides".

It does not target any third party and simply provides a general framework for China-Iran cooperation going forward.

And Wang emphasized that no matter how the international and regional situations change, China will maintain its friendly policies toward Iran. Those who have chosen to view the long-term cooperation plan from the perspective of geopolitical competition lose sight of the real picture of China-Iran cooperation, which will benefit the two peoples and contribute to maintaining regional and world peace. They pretend not to see the positive effects of China-Iran cooperation as they are still looking through a lens from the Cold War era.

Salvaging the multilateral Iranian nuclear deal, which suffered a serious blow when former US president Donald Trump withdrew the United States from it, would be a significant step toward easing the slow-boiling tensions between the US and Iran. Wang urged the United States to take concrete measures to ease unilateral sanctions against Iran and end its "long-arm jurisdiction" over third parties, and Iran to resume fulfilling its commitments.

On their parts, Beijing and Teheran certainly have a stronger need to shore up their common ground through closer cooperation, but they are not simply friends in need or friends all of a sudden but rather long-term friends with their eyes on a shared future.