Iran: Proposed deal with China raises domestic critics’ hackles

The authorities in Tehran are struggling to regain the initiative around a proposed 25-year pact with Beijing that has drawn criticism from a wide range of figures in the Islamic Republic.Foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif insisted there was “nothing secret” about the deal when speaking to the Majlis-e Shura-ye Eslami (parliament). However, with details of the proposals as yet unpublished, there has been widespread speculation about what might be contained in the deal.