Israel-Iran conflict stirs up patriotism among Chinese netizens

Israel launched a sudden attack on Iran, eliminating several senior commanders including the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as well as nuclear scientists in one fell swoop.

The Israel-Iran conflict has attracted significant attention on Chinese social media platforms. Netizens were surprised by the ineffectiveness of Iran’s air defence system, easily penetrated by Israel and the US without detection, like a sieve.

Supporting Israel from behind is the US. Meanwhile, the China-Russia-Iran triangle is seen as a partnership, having conducted annual joint naval exercises since 2019.

The Chinese government has a clear stance on the Israel-Iran conflict. During a call with Iran’s foreign minister, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi clearly condemned Israel’s violation of Iran’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity, and emphasised China’s support for Iran in safeguarding its sovereignty, legitimate rights and the safety of its people.

Between Israel and Iran, the majority of Chinese netizens unconditionally supports Iran, with a small minority supporting Israel.

However, despite declaring that it “reserves the right to retaliate” after the raid, Iran did not immediately do so. Judging from the casualty figures released by the media, Iran’s delayed response seemed inferior to Israel’s swift, forceful and precise actions. Many Chinese netizens mocked Iran as a “paper tiger”, commenting that its biggest act of vengeance was “raising a flag” (a symbol of revenge hoisted above the Jamkaran Mosque in the holy city of Qom, Iran).

Chinese netizens described Iran as weak and timid, whereby cowardice invites aggression. Some articles even labelled Iran as “the most timid country in the world”. 

Comments and articles from netizens listed various acts of “cowardice” by Iran, in particular when US President Donald Trump visited Saudi Arabia in mid-May. He had openly threatened at a forum that if Iran refused to reach an agreement on the nuclear issue, the US would reduce Iran’s oil exports to zero, and cause its economy to collapse completely.

Following that, an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei stated in an interview with US media that Iran was willing to abandon its stockpile of high-enriched uranium, limit uranium enrichment to lower levels for civilian use and accept international inspectors to supervise the process, in exchange for the immediate lifting of all US economic sanctions on Iran.

Chinese netizens pointed out that Iran thought disarmament could lead to the US lifting sanctions, but instead it exposed its bottom line to the US and Israel. Israel chose to launch a raid before the US-Iran nuclear talks on 15 June and targeted Iran’s nuclear facilities, intending to eliminate the threat of Iran developing nuclear weapons.

Chinese netizens also brought up “old scores”, and pointed out that when Pakistan and India engaged in aerial combat, the Iranian foreign minister visited India and signed an Iran-India all-weather strategic partnership agreement — evidently a misjudgment that Pakistan would surely lose.

The two aforementioned events have led to a significant decline in Chinese online sentiment towards Iran. Some commentators even suggest that Iran should learn from Pakistan and purchase Chinese weapons, as the India-Pakistan conflict has proven “the effectiveness of Chinese weapons”. An online article by Zhan Hao (占豪) analysed that believing in China makes a huge difference in outcomes, asserting that “Pakistan uses Chinese weapons, while Iran uses Russian ones”.

The article also stated that after the death of hardline Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in a plane crash in May 2024, the US and Israel realised that Iran had completely backed down. It implied that the frequent assassinations of leaders from Iranian-backed groups like Hamas and Hezbollah were due to intelligence leaks, and even claimed that Iran was largely involved in these incidents.

On Weibo, some Chinese netizens compared Iran’s “cowardice” to North Korea, stating that Iran being attacked further proves that North Korea’s approach is correct: “When the West thinks you have weapons of mass destruction, you better actually have them!” 

Some netizens also likened Iran to China during the late Qing dynasty, suggesting that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is similar to the Eight Banners (八旗). They argued that the primary concern of Iran’s ruling class is maintaining its rule, rather than focusing on national dignity, territorial integrity and the country’s future, akin to the late Qing’s priority of preserving the regime over the nation. 

In 2021, China and Iran signed a 25-year cooperation agreement under which China is slated to invest US$400 billion in Iran over 25 years in exchange for a steady supply of oil. Notwithstanding the threat of US sanctions, China remains Iran’s most stable oil buyer. Chinese netizens are also paying close attention to whether Iran, if pushed to the brink, might block the Strait of Hormuz, as this would harm global interests, including those of China.

As the situation in the Middle East evolves, it is believed that China’s official stance on the Israel-Iran conflict is unlikely to change significantly. However, it is likely to strengthen its cooperation with other Middle Eastern countries to prevent the entire region from becoming a US backyard in the event that the Iranian regime collapses and Russia remains deeply entangled in the Russia-Ukraine war.

Perhaps, what the authorities could not have foreseen was that the keyword “never kneel down”, which was emphasised during the China-US trade war, has gained vivid prominence on Chinese internet and social media platforms due to the Israel-Iran conflict.

The phrase “never kneel down” is intended to serve as an internal motivator, encouraging unity and a fight to the end with the US. At the same time, it also calls on other nations to join forces in resisting the US.

If the previous wave of propaganda did not fully resonate with Chinese netizens, then the latest turmoil in the Middle East is likely to reinforce this sentiment.

A real-life conflict is far more impactful than a two-minute propaganda video. The stark contrast between “Iran’s cowardice” and “China’s resolution” has prompted Chinese netizens to recall the “spirit of resisting US aggression and aiding Korea”, arguing that if China had retreated in that war, “the US would be today’s Israel, and we would be today’s Iran — this is the reason why many call the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea the ‘foundational war’ for our nation”.

The narrative that Iran being attacked is the consequence of kneeling down and submitting to the US has, through repeated reinforcement and internalisation by Chinese netizens, undoubtedly become more advantageous for the government’s future domestic propaganda in its strategic rivalry with the US. This is because it more readily stirs up a unifying patriotic spirit against a common adversary.

This article was first published in Lianhe Zaobao as “中国网民看伊朗又菜又怂”.

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