China's push to link east and west puts Iran at 'centre of everything'

Neyshabur, Iran

WHEN Lin Zuao Ru, a Beijing entrepreneur, first heard about business opportunities in eastern Iran, he was sceptical. But then he bought a map and began to envision the region without any borders, as one enormous market.

"Many countries are close by, even Europe," Mr Lin, 49, said while driving his white BMW over the highway connecting Teheran to the eastern Iranian city of Mashhad recently. "Iran is at the centre of everything."