SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reaffirmed his country’s opposition to unilateral sanctions by the United States against Iran.
Wang met with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian in the city of Wuxi in Jiangsu province on Friday, according to China’s foreign ministry.
During his visit, Amirabdollahian is set to announce the launch of a 25-year cooperation agreement between the Islamic Republic and Communist-ruled China, Reuters reported.
Reuters cited Wang as saying that the U.S. bore primary responsibility for the ongoing difficulties with Iran, having unilaterally withdrawn from a 2015 nuclear deal between the major powers and Iran.
Under the terms of that deal, in return for the lifting of international sanctions, Iran would limit uranium enrichment activity, making it harder to develop nuclear arms – although Tehran denies having plans for nuclear weapons.
Wang said China would firmly support a resumption of negotiations on a nuclear pact.
But he said China firmly opposes illegal unilateral sanctions against Iran, political manipulation through topics including human rights, and interference in the internal affairs of Iran and other regional countries.
The United States reimposed sanctions that badly damaged Iran’s economy after withdrawing from the nuclear pact in 2018, saying the terms did not do enough to curb Iran’s nuclear activities, ballistic missile program and regional influence.
A year later, Iran began to gradually breach the accord, rebuilding stockpiles of enriched uranium, refining it to higher fissile purity and installing advanced centrifuges to speed up output.
Iran and the U.S. remain locked in talks over whether a compromise can be found to renew the deal and dispel fears of a wider Middle East War. A source close to negotiations said on Friday that many issues remain unresolved.
