Tehran, Iran, December 6
By Mehdi Sepahvand -- Trend:
The fact that China is politically opposed to the US makes it an ally to Iran, so much so that the Islamic Republic would not allow itself interfere with Muslim minority affairs in China, Iranian political analyst Ahmad Naqibzadeh said.
Iran is in good relations with China, politically and economically, which has precedence over minor issues, the political expert told Trend December 6.
Naqibzadeh pointed out that the Islamic Republic will stand behind Muslim groups as long as they do not resort to violence in their dealings with ruling powers.
The Chechens were an example of that, as there was no way for Iran to continue supporting them when they started doing acts of terror against Russia, he further said.
The same goes for the Muslim tribes of China, which have resorted to violence in recent years, whereas opposition to the US is a grand strategy with the Islamic Republic, Naqibzadeh stated.
In late November, Chinese police killed 28 members of the "terrorist group" in the main Muslim Xinjiang region, in the bloodiest operation during months.
The killings took place over the course of a 56-day manhunt following an attack on a colliery in Aksu in September that left 16 people dead, said the Xinjiang regional government's Tianshan web portal.
Beijing regularly accuses those exiled Uighur separatist groups of being behind attacks in Xinjiang, which has seen a wave of deadly unrest.
But the overseas experts doubt the strength of the groups and their links to global terrorism, with some saying China exaggerates the threat to justify tough security measures in the resource-rich region.