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China’s Dong Jun hosts Iran defence minister and others on warship, condemns ‘hegemony’

Iranian Defence Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh tours Type 052D destroyer Kaifeng, thanks Beijing for ‘supporting Iran’s legitimate position’

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Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun (third left) walks past Iranian Defence Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh (second right) and other SCO defence chiefs ahead of a meeting in Qingdao on Thursday. Photo: AP
Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun condemned “hegemony” as the biggest source of global chaos as he hosted his Iranian counterpart and other senior defence staff on an advanced Chinese warship, days after the US bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities.
Iranian Defence Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh was among defence chiefs received by Dong on the PLA Navy’s Type 052D destroyer Kaifeng on Wednesday. The visit took place on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) defence ministers’ meeting, a two-day event in Qingdao that ended on Thursday.

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Nasirzadeh and the others toured the People’s Liberation Army warship before attending a reception on its deck, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

During the event, Nasirzadeh thanked Beijing for “supporting Iran’s legitimate position after recent attacks” from Israel and the United States.

“We hope China will continue to stand for justice, help maintain the current ceasefire and play a greater role in easing regional tensions,” he was quoted as saying by China’s state news agency Xinhua.

Dong said that “unilateralism, protectionism and acts of hegemony and bullying are surging, severely disrupting the international order and making them the biggest source of chaos and strife”, Xinhua reported.

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