
China and the Iran War: Beijing's Ambitions in the Middle East
From Pekingology by Center for Strategic and International Studies
April 30, 2026 · 39 min
About this episode
The episode explores China's ambitions in the Middle East and its approach to the U.S. war against Iran, featuring insights from expert Aaron Glasserman.
In this episode of Pekingology, CSIS Senior Fellow Henrietta Levin is joined by Aaron Glasserman, an expert on China's Middle East strategy and postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for the Study of Contemporary China. Aaron and Henrietta unpack what China is really trying to achieve in the Middle East, how China is approaching the U.S. war against Iran, and what this all means for the upcoming summit between President Trump and President Xi.
People in this episode
Host: Henrietta Levin
Guest: Aaron Glasserman
Topics covered
- China's Middle East strategy
- U.S. war against Iran
- China-Iran relations
- Geopolitical ambitions
- International diplomacy
- Trump-Xi summit
Keywords
- China
- Iran
- Middle East
- U.S. war
- geopolitics
- Trump
- Xi
- diplomacy
- strategy
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Center for Strategic and International Studies
Places: China, Iran, United States, Middle East
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