China and the Iranian Revolution: New Perspectives on Sino-Iranian Relations, 1965–1979

Abstract

This article examines several under-explored aspects of Sino-Iranian relations in the 1970s, the process of Sino-Iranian rapprochement, and China's reaction to the 1979 revolution. By relying on sources in both Chinese and Persian and pushing back the timeline to 1965, it analyses the role of China's unofficial support for Iranian Maoism on official relations, the personal role of the Shah and the women of the royal family, China's internal view of the Islamic Republic shortly after 1979, and the role of propaganda and performativity in Sino-Iranian diplomacy. In doing so, it sheds new light on old topics and expands on previous studies that focus primarily on the official politics of rapprochement and the post-1971 era.