China and Russia yesterday joined Iran in denouncing US sanctions, and backed efforts to restore a landmark nuclear deal with Tehran that US President Donald Trump abandoned in his first term and now wants to replace.
The three countries — all sanctioned by the US to varying degrees — stressed the need to end unilateral restrictions and urged the resumption of international talks over Iran’s atomic activities at a meeting in Beijing, a joint statement said.
Russia and China were key participants in the agreement signed during former US president Barack Obama’s administration that restricted Iran’s nuclear activity in exchange for sanctions relief, before Trump’s withdrawal in 2018.
Photo: AFP
As the standoff drags on, Iran has expanded its stocks of near-bomb grade enriched uranium, while Washington has toughened its sanctions.
Chinese Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Ma Zhaoxu (馬朝旭) hosted yesterday’s meeting, which was also attended by Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Ryabkov and his Iranian counterpart, Kazem Gharibabadi.
A separate meeting included Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅).
“Political and diplomatic engagement and dialogue based on the principle of mutual respect remains the only viable and practical option,” Ma told reporters after the meeting.
Last week, Trump reiterated his interest in striking a new nuclear deal with Iran and warned the only alternative for the Islamic republic was to face military action.
The Beijing gathering follows a flurry of diplomatic activity on Iran’s nuclear program as world powers try to evade another crisis, at a time when wars in the Middle East and Ukraine are posing risks to energy prices and the global economy.
Iran has already had at least two rounds of preliminary nuclear talks with diplomats from the UK, France and Germany in Geneva in recent months. Trump also wrote a letter addressed to the Iranian leadership, which was received in Tehran on Wednesday via a top official from the United Arab Emirates.
The contents of the missive are not known and there has been no official response.
The participants in Beijing emphasized the need for all countries to abstain from actions that would undermine the inspection activities of the International Atomic Energy Agency monitors still working in Iran. The UN watchdog last month reported a surge in nuclear activity in Iran over the past few months.
“The situation has reached a critical juncture again. We must buy time for peace, resolve disputes through political and diplomatic means, and oppose the use of force and illegal sanctions,” Wang told reporters.
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