Alliances without guarantees... Western sanctions "booby-trap" Iran's path towards the battle of the East.

Arabian Sea Newspaper - Special

Arab Gulf - Follow-ups: The "Look East" strategy has become the latest point of contention in Iran's tense politics, with conservatives presenting it as a shield against Western isolation, while reformists warn that it risks over-reliance on unreliable partners. According to a report by "Iran International" channel, the debate intensified last week when Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian participated in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Tianjin, China. While his usual critics in the hardline camp hailed the trip as evidence of Iran's integration into a multipolar world order, some moderate supporters warned that the bloc's loose structure and competing interests diminish its usefulness in times of need. Supporters of the "Look East" approach portray SCO membership as a political victory, with the hardline Kayhan newspaper writing: "Strengthening Iran's presence in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the BRICS group hinders the US and Western project to isolate Iran." It pointed out that the clear message is that "the more pressure increases, the stronger Iran's relations with major non-Western powers become." Meanwhile, Nour News Agency, affiliated with the Iranian security establishment, affirmed that the trip coincided with Europe's activation of the mechanism to reimpose sanctions, and argued that membership helps Tehran build a "political consensus" against Western pressure. The summit's final statement denounced the sanctions imposed on Iran as unfair and condemned the Israeli military strike on Iranian territory. However, reformist voices highlight the bloc's limitations, with Sazandegi pointing out that the SCO is neither NATO nor the European Union, and offers no security guarantees, and has in the past rejected Iran's membership due to UN sanctions. The newspaper Kayhan considered Russia, which received little practical support from the SCO after Western sanctions, "an example that reinforces this view." Diverging Economic Expectations Economically, supporters of the "Look East" movement see this policy as an antidote to sanctions and a gateway to new markets. Pezeshkian used the summit to call for greater use of national currencies, shared digital financial systems, and a multilateral clearing fund. The Javan newspaper, affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard, said that such mechanisms could reduce dependence on the Western financial system. "The SCO provides a platform to reduce dependence on the Western financial system," the newspaper wrote in its Sunday edition. It added that "a multilateral currency fund... could accelerate the growth of Iran's digital economy, while linking Chabahar port to the North-South Corridor will transform Iran into a trade crossroads between China, Russia, and India." Critics respond that these ambitions face severe limitations, as key SCO member states, including India and Central Asian countries, maintain close economic ties with the West and may be reluctant to risk secondary sanctions. Security Expectations Although the SCO is not a military alliance, conservatives view its security framework and symbolism as central to the "Look East" initiative. Javan said that Pezeshkian's presence alongside Chinese, Russian, and Indian leaders sent a deterrent message. "The response to any American-Israeli attack will not come from Tehran alone, but also by other means, from the Eastern bloc," the newspaper affirmed. The same outlet pointed to prospects for cooperation in the fields of cyber, artificial intelligence, and advanced communications, saying that Russian and Chinese technologies could help Iran bridge the technological gap caused by sanctions and support "smart modernization of defense and the economy." The state-run Iran newspaper acknowledged that expectations regarding Eastern alliances were exaggerated in some circles, saying: "Some in Tehran expected the SCO to act as a real security shield for its members, not just issue a formal statement of condemnation." However, these expectations are not based on institutional facts as much as on romantic concepts and the weaving of political myths, the report added: "Over the past two decades, labels such as the Eastern NATO, the anti-Western hegemony alliance, or even the new Warsaw Pact, have fueled these inflated perceptions in Iranian political discourse."