SCFR President Dr. Kamal Kharrazi in a meeting with Yan Xuetong, the distinguished professor and the Dean of the Institute of International Relations, Tsinghua University, emphasizing the important role of Iran and China in human civilization, said: China and Iran have rich civilizational experiences. The Chinese have adopted Confucian doctrines and Iranians have taken up Islamic teachings as the basis of their civilization today. Therefore, scientific and civilizational exchanges would be useful in sharing the experiences of the two nations.

The SCFR chief, criticizing the Western powers’ obstructionist approaches towards independent states, emphasized that the signing of a comprehensive strategic document on 25 years of cooperation between Iran and China will pave the way for boosting bilateral cooperation between Tehran and Beijing in different fields.

He said Iran welcomes exchange of students and scientific cooperation between the universities of the two countries.

Dr. Kharrazi underlining the importance of the role played by leaders in making reforms and resolving the on-going problems, said: “In revolutions, the role of leadership in guiding nations is crucial otherwise the movement of nations would turn chaotic.

The SCFR president added: Asian people need to formulate their political philosophy of today based on their civilizational and cultural values.

Yan Xuetong, author of Ancient Chinese Thought and Modern Chinese Power, also emphasized the importance of leadership in reform success in any country.

“If everyone is supposed to make decisions, it would be catastrophic, so small groups of thinkers have to contribute to the consolidation of the system by providing their leaders with basic ideas,” he said.

Referring to the need for continued reform in any country, the eminent Chinese professor emphasized that reform does not mean changing the principles, but making the necessary decisions according to the circumstances.

Noting that Chinese foreign policy relies on the three principles of Chinese realities, globalization, and Chinese culture, Yan Xuetong said: Although Chinese policy is officially based on Marxism, it is practically pragmatist.

The Dean of the Institute of International Relations at Tsinghua University, while emphasizing the importance of Iran-China cooperation, stressed that the cooperation should go far beyond the fields of energy and be extended to different sectors, and the two governments have important responsibilities in this regard.

He further described Iran’s decision to lift visas formality for the Chinese travelling to Iran to promote tourism industry and to familiarize the Chinese people with Iran “very important”.

In another part of his speech and in analyzing US-China competitions, Yan Xuetong said: “US policy is to prevent the progress and China from the development of technology.”

This distinguished professor of international relations is in Tehran to attend the unveiling ceremony of a translation of his book, “Ancient Chinese Thought and Modern Chinese Power” to Persian.