Inscribed on the blue tiles above the entrance to Iran’s foreign ministry in downtown Tehran is the ideological motto that has informed its foreign policy since the 1979 revolution: “Neither East, Nor West; [only] the Islamic Republic”.

But in what appears to be a tactical shift for a theocratic state under pressure from US sanctions and hopeful for better relations with other states, Iran’s leaders are working on a “comprehensive” 25-year plan to become “important strategic partners” with China.

A proposal approved by the Iranian cabinet in June and yet to be put to Beijing reflects the regime’s attempt to better position itself and its economy in the face of US sanctions and what it sees as limited European efforts to save the 2015 nuclear deal, say analysts. That deal - under which Tehran agreed to abide by limits on its nuclear programme in return for sanctions relief - has faltered since the US abandoned it in 2018.