Iran to Center Stage: How Trump’s Decisions on Iranian Regime Affects China, Russia and Global Geopolitics
Joshua Philipp, senior investigative reporter for The Epoch Times and host of the Crossroads podcast, argues that what’s unfolding with Iran right now is not a regional crisis—it’s a global power play with China at its core. As Washington confronts Tehran’s nuclear ambitions, Philipp says the real target is the Chinese Communist Party’s expanding alliance network, with Iran and Russia as key pillars. This is geopolitical chess at the highest level, where pressure abroad is designed to fracture adversarial blocs—while America remains dangerously distracted from the CCP’s growing influence inside its own borders.
• Tehran functions as China’s most reliable Middle East proxy, supplying energy, leverage, and strategic depth for the CCP
• Pressuring Tehran disrupts Beijing’s access to discounted oil and weakens China’s energy security
• Iran’s nuclear program is a force multiplier for China and Russia, keeping the U.S. and its allies tied down
• Confrontation fractures the CCP–Russia–Iran alignment without requiring direct U.S.–China confrontation
• Trump’s focus signals strategic deterrence, not regional obsession
• Beijing’s diplomatic protection of Tehran reveals how central Iran is to China’s global ambitions
• Venezuela and Iran form twin pressure points in Trump’s effort to undermine CCP-backed regimes
• Iran’s elevation to center stage reflects a broader campaign to expose and constrain China’s shadow empire
The unfolding crisis over Iran’s nuclear program and broader geopolitical alignments is not an isolated Middle Eastern flashpoint — it is a cornerstone of a global struggle that directly affects China’s strategic position, Russia’s ambitions, and the United States’ ability to counter a mounting authoritarian bloc. With Iran’s deepening ties to China and Russia, Tehran has become a key node in a wide network of anti-Western cooperation that has serious implications for U.S. national security.
For years, Iran has leaned on Beijing and Moscow for economic, diplomatic, and increasingly military support, even as it resists U.S. pressure on its nuclear and missile programs. China, in particular, continues to provide diplomatic cover, economic lifelines through oil purchases and technology partnerships, and strategic cooperation that collectively undermine efforts to isolate Tehran. Beijing is Iran’s primary external partner in both energy trade and technology integration, making it far more than just a secondary backer.
President Trump’s apparent focus on confronting Iran and Venezuela isn’t random. These theaters are not separated from the broader goal of weakening the CCP’s global reach and fracturing the rapprochement between China, Russia, and other revisionist powers. According to analysts, U.S. actions in Venezuela and Iran form part of a larger strategy to disrupt the “Axis of Unity” — the informal geopolitical alliance of nations opposed to U.S. dominance.
The recent high-stakes U.S.–Iran negotiations in Oman, focusing on Tehran’s nuclear program, underscore the urgency of these dynamics right now. While Tehran insists on its sovereign right to enrich uranium and refuses to expand talks to encompass missiles or regional militancy, the U.S. pushback — backed by increased military presence — highlights how nuclear containment is front and center.
What is striking in this global context is what is and isn’t being publicly addressed. Domestically, many of the loudest debates center on internal social issues, while the strategic maneuvering playing out between Washington, Beijing, Tehran, and Moscow is far more consequential. Critics argue that figures like Neville Roy Singham and George Soros have contributed to domestic tensions — but these internal pressures pale in comparison to the existential geopolitical threat posed by a Sino–Russian–Iranian alignment.
Joshua Philipp can provide fresh context that ties the Iran nuclear standoff not just to Middle Eastern security, but to the larger strategic contest with the CCP and its allies, explaining how this unfolds across diplomacy, intelligence, and geopolitical fault lines at a moment of profound global risk.
Relevant Article(s)
OPTIONAL Q&A:
- Why is Iran not just a Middle East problem, but a central pillar in China’s global strategy?
- How does confronting Iran and Venezuela weaken the CCP and Russia without direct confrontation?
- What role does Iran’s nuclear program play in binding China, Russia, and Tehran together?
- Why does the administration appear more willing to challenge China abroad than confront CCP influence inside the United States?
- How do domestic destabilization efforts distract from or complement China’s external geopolitical objectives?
- What risks does the U.S. face if Iran is allowed to reach nuclear threshold status under Chinese and Russian protection?
- How should Americans understand the timing of the current Iran negotiations in the context of a broader global power struggle?
- What are the consequences if the U.S. misreads this moment as isolated crises instead of coordinated strategy?
ABOUT JOSHUA PHILIPP…
Joshua Philipp is an award-winning journalist and Senior Investigative Reporter at The Epoch Times. He is the host of ‘Crossroads,’ a news and analysis program on EpochTV. His works have included breakthrough investigations into the origins of Covid-19 and the Wuhan laboratory in the early days of the pandemic. He spearheaded the first documentary on the lab leak origins of the COVID-19 virus, released in April 2020. This groundbreaking documentary garnered over 75 million views, and while many tried to label it misinformation, its findings have since been vindicated by the White House and US intelligence agencies.
ABOUT NAN SU…
Nan Su is currently a Senior Reporter for the Epoch Times, a New York-based newspaper published in 36 countries and 22 languages. Mr. Su’s focus has been subjects related to China.
Born and raised in China, Mr. Nan Su came to the United States in 1989. Since 2003, he has served as a news commentator for the SOH International Chinese Radio Network and NTD International TV Network, focusing on news related to China. Over the past two decades, Mr. Su has delivered numerous speeches at public events on a wide range of China-related topics.
As an expert on China, Mr. Su’s work has covered extensively on subjects such as the threat of CCP’s global expansion, the security of Taiwan and Taiwan Strait, CCP’s human rights abuses in China, China’s economy, traditional Chinese culture before communism, forced organ harvesting in China, and the struggle for freedom in Hong Kong.
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