Sistani Receives Rouhani, Stresses Respect For States’ Sovereignty

Iraq’s Senior Shiite Cleric Ali Sistani, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Najaf on Wednesday. (Ali Sistani’s media office/AFP/Getty Images)
Iraq’s Senior Shiite Cleric Ali Sistani, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Najaf on Wednesday. (Ali Sistani’s media office/AFP/Getty Images)
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Sistani Receives Rouhani, Stresses Respect For States’ Sovereignty

Iraq’s Senior Shiite Cleric Ali Sistani, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Najaf on Wednesday. (Ali Sistani’s media office/AFP/Getty Images)
Iraq’s Senior Shiite Cleric Ali Sistani, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Najaf on Wednesday. (Ali Sistani’s media office/AFP/Getty Images)

Iraq’s Shiite cleric Ali Sistani underlined the importance of respecting the sovereignty of states, during his meeting on Wednesday with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.

A statement by Sistani’s office said Iraq’s top Shiite cleric welcomed “any move to strengthen Iraq’s relations with its neighbors based on respect for state sovereignty and non-interference in its internal affairs.”

Sistani emphasized, in light of the fragile situation in the region, “the need for international and regional policies to be balanced and moderate in order to spare people more tragedies and damage.”

He pointed out that the most major challenges facing Iraq at this stage were fighting corruption, restricting the use of weapons to state and security services, as well as improving public services.”

Sistani’s office statement highlighted “the fateful war waged by the Iraqi people to defeat ISIS,” and “the great sacrifices made by the heroic Iraqis to achieve victory over this terrorist organization and to eliminate its danger from the entire region.”

The meeting was held on the third day of Rouhani’s visit to Baghdad.

Shiite cleric Haidar al-Gharabi told Asharq Al-Awsat that talks between Sistani and the Iranian president gave many “indications of the current stage in Iraq, represented by a multitude of agendas, especially foreign ones.”

“Iran is an important international player in the region and Iraq; therefore, the understanding with the highest religious authority in Najaf comes in this context, especially as we believe that Iran has positive attitudes towards Iraq,” Gharabi said.

Sistani had closed his doors since late 2015 to Iraqi politicians, including presidents, ministers, MPs and bloc leaders. He also refused to receive the French foreign minister who visited Iraq in January.



China Calls Zelenskyy's Remarks on Chinese Fighters in Ukraine 'Irresponsible'

In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanised Brigade press service, Ukrainian servicemen fire a multiple launch rocket system based on a pickup truck in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanised Brigade via AP)Share
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanised Brigade press service, Ukrainian servicemen fire a multiple launch rocket system based on a pickup truck in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanised Brigade via AP)Share
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China Calls Zelenskyy's Remarks on Chinese Fighters in Ukraine 'Irresponsible'

In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanised Brigade press service, Ukrainian servicemen fire a multiple launch rocket system based on a pickup truck in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanised Brigade via AP)Share
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanised Brigade press service, Ukrainian servicemen fire a multiple launch rocket system based on a pickup truck in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanised Brigade via AP)Share

China on Thursday described as “irresponsible" accusations by Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that Russia is actively recruiting Chinese citizens to fight alongside its forces in the Ukraine war.

Zelenskyy said Wednesday that over 150 such mercenaries are already active on the battlefield with Beijing’s knowledge. He spoke after the capture this week of two Chinese nationals who were fighting for Russia in eastern Ukraine.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian repeated China's assertions that it supports and promotes a peaceful settlement to the conflict and that the Chinese government “always asks Chinese nationals to stay away from areas of armed conflict, avoid any form of involvement in armed conflict, and in particular avoid participation in any party’s military operations.”

“We call on the relevant party to be correct and sober about China’s role and refrain from making irresponsible remarks,” Lin said at a daily briefing in response to a question about Zelenskyy's comments, The AP news reported.

The two captured Chinese nationals were identified as Wang Guangjun, born in 1991 and Zhang Renbo, born in 1998.

China and Russia are close geostrategic partners. Just days before Russia's full-on invasion of Ukraine three years ago, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping signed a document declaring a “friendship without limits” between their nations, although China has since dropped the phrase as the war grinds on.

China is not known to have provided troops or armaments directly to Russia, but has provided strong diplomatic support and an economic lifeline through the purchase of oil, gas and minerals and the vast majority of “dual-use” goods such as engines that have both military and civilian purposes.

Despite Beijing's denials, Russia is actively recruiting Chinese citizens to fight alongside its forces in the Ukraine war with over 150 such mercenaries already active in the battle with Beijing’s knowledge, Zelenskyy said on Wednesday.

Citing intelligence reports, Zelenskyy said Russia was recruiting Chinese citizens through social media by sharing news and videos to entice fresh mercenaries. Zelenskyy said Beijing was aware of the recruitment campaign.

“The Chinese issue is serious,” he said, in a briefing with reporters. “There are 155 people with surnames, with passport data, 155 Chinese citizens fighting against Ukrainians on the territory of Ukraine. We are collecting information; we believe that there are many more of them.

“The scheme of how they recruit them is clear. One of the schemes is through social networks, in particular Tik-Tok and other Chinese social networks, where Russians distribute advertising videos,” he added, saying that “officially Beijing knows about this. Russians distribute advertising videos about recruitment through Chinese social networks.”

He said it was “not secret recruitment,” although parts of it might be covert.

Documents listing the names, passport numbers and personal details of the Chinese recruits known to Ukrainian intelligence were shared with journalists. They are active in the 70th, 71st and 255th Russian motorized rifle regiments, Zelenskyy said.

Some photos of known Chinese mercenaries were also shared. The documents detail when recruits arrived at Russian military training centers and when they departed for military service.

The recruits traveled to Moscow and underwent medical examinations before 1 to 2 months of military training and then deployment to Ukraine, Zelenskyy said.

Both sides have employed mercenaries and other foreign fighters in the war, including thousands of North Koreans soldiers fighting for Russia on Russian territory. Their effectiveness has been negligible, but their presence points to the generous pay Russia is offering as well as troubles it is having recruiting from among Russians, many of whom have fled abroad to avoid conscription.

Zelenskyy said he is willing to exchange the Chinese fighters for Ukrainian soldiers held captive by Russia. The two men were fighting in different Russian military brigades and were captured in two different villages in the Donetsk region. Zelenskyy said the two were being held by the Ukrainian Security Service in Kyiv.

“We believe that the others are in eastern Ukraine, but in fact we need to look. Here are two different villages, two different brigades. And the brigade, you know, holds a fairly long section,” Zelenskyy said.

The Ukrainian president stepped back from accusing Beijing of having an overt policy of deploying mercenaries to Ukraine, saying he was not sure yet what China’s intentions were.