Iran, China sign 25-year cooperation agreement
27 March 2021
China and Iran, both subject to U.S. sanctions, signed a 25-year cooperation agreement in Tehran on Saturday.
Why it matters: China agreed to invest $400 billion in Iran's economy over that time period in exchange for a steady and heavily discounted supply of oil from the country, according to a draft of the agreement obtained by the New York Times.
What they're saying: “Relations between the two countries have now reached the level of strategic partnership and China seeks to comprehensively improve relations with Iran,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said, according to Reuters.
- “Our relations with Iran will not be affected by the current situation, but will be permanent and strategic."
Thought bubble, via Axios' Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian: Iran has become ever more dependent on China, which has offered it a rare economic lifeline amid heavy U.S. sanctions.
The big picture: The agreement may deepen China’s influence in the Middle East and undermine U.S. efforts to keep Iran isolated due the unresolved dispute over Tehran's nuclear program, per the NYT.
- Iran's leaders indicated in January that they're willing to strike a nuclear agreement with the Biden administration.
- But Biden said last month that Iran will first have to stop enriching uranium above levels set by the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement before the countries can revive the deal.
- The U.S. reentering the 2015 Iran nuclear deal remains unpopular with U.S. ally Israel.
Go deeper ...43 senators to Biden: Use "full force" of diplomatic, economic tools to check Iran
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.