Iran and China: The latest invasion IN BIG Persian letters, the teacher shapes the word ertibat, meaning relationship, on the white board of a language class for adult foreigners in the industrial town of Qazvin, 140km (87 miles) north-east of Tehran, Iran's capital. By way of defining the word, she asks: "Does Iran have a good relationship with Germany?" "It's very complicated," ventures the only German in the class, with a nervous laugh. Inverting the question, the teacher tries again: "What country has a good relationship with the Islamic Republic?" "China!" shout the 12 young Chinese men and women who make up the rest of the class. Five years ago, Chinese students made up around a tenth of the students at the school. Now they are roughly half. Even as America and other Western governments have tightened economic sanctions against Iran with the aim of forcing it to curb its nuclear ambitions, China has continued to strengthen its links with the Islamic Republic. Iran's oil, which generates around 80% of government revenues, is increasingly flowing towards refineries in China, which is now its biggest trading partner. Iran has also become a lucrative market for Chinese products and services. China is investing $1 billion to improve Tehran's infrastructure. A Chinese conglomerate has already expanded the sprawling capital's underground railway, under a contract worth $328m. Most of the Chinese in the Qazvin language class are young women. Roughly half are married to Iranians; the rest are eager economic migrants. Chun, the most gregarious, is a go-between for Chinese T-shirt manufacturers and their Iranian customers. She is an avid reader of "financial novels" with titles such as "The Get-Rich Diary of China's Poorest Guy," a rags-to-riches tale of an electric-cable salesman. She speaks English in slogans, having learnt the language from watching American television. "You know Chinese people only care about money," she declares half-jokingly, sucking her teeth. You think I come to Iran for funny? No! I come here for money. If I want somewhere fun I would have gone somewhere nice! Adjusting her pink hijab, she explains that "China goes everywhere. Many countries want Chinese products but not every country speaks Chinese...Iran is very, very good for business because it's not expensive like other countries. Many Chinese people are afraid to go to Muslim countries because they think they are dangerous. But that's not true. Iran is only crazy, it's not dangerous. She says she makes $150 a day, seven days a week. I go for one day, they make deal. I go. Easy. Chun represents a new generation of Chinese entrepreneurs in the world of emerging markets. Although America inveighs against countries and firms that still do business with Iran, China has been reluctant to cut its imports of Iranian crude, which make up over 10% of its oil consumption. "China opposes any country imposing unilateral sanctions on another country pursuant to its domestic law," the Chinese foreign ministry declared in a statement issued in June. In any event, China sees its trade with Iran as part of a wider geostrategic policy of countering American hegemony in the Middle East, while at the same time making it harder for America to "pivot towards the Pacific." Navid, an Iranian trader, owns a midsized company that imports chemicals from China to supply Iran's plastics industry. Five years ago his suppliers were all in Europe but, after successive rounds of anti-Iranian sanctions, he now gets most of his chemicals from China. Most Iranians, however, bear no special love for either China or the Chinese. Many think China is just another country seeking to exploit their country's weakness. "We can't rely on the Chinese," says Navid. They care only about themselves. The quality of their goods is often poor. After several cargoes arrived with "fraudulent" chemicals inside, he has to pay for quality tests in China, adding weeks to the delivery time. "The Mongols are invading again," he concludes.