Chinese President Xi Jinping told his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday that China firmly supported Iran’s right to peaceful civilian nuclear energy. Furthermore, he emphasized that force is not the right way to resolve differences, instead advocating for communication and dialogue as the proper path toward achieving lasting peace.
Xi delivered these remarks to Pezeshkian during talks in Beijing, according to a readout from state broadcaster CCTV. China respects Iran’s rights to peaceful use of nuclear energy and seeks a solution to the Iranian nuclear issue that takes into account the legitimate concerns of all parties, he said.
Beijing Stands Against Sanctions
China, a close partner and Iran’s largest trade partner, recently opposed a move by France, Britain, and Germany to potentially reimpose sanctions on the Islamic Republic. On Thursday, those European nations invoked the “snapback” mechanism, which immediately initiates a 30-day process to re-establish sanctions on Iran. European powers made this strategic move after issuing weeks of warnings regarding Iran’s alleged breaches of its 2015 agreement with world powers, which previously suspended those sanctions to curb its nuclear program.
Consequently, Iran suspended its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog, after Israel launched a 12-day war in June. During the conflict, Israel attempted to destroy Iran’s nuclear capability while the United States simultaneously staged a separate bombing raid.
In another recent development, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), a Eurasian leaders’ group including China, Iran, and Russia, issued a warning on Monday against efforts to “reinterpret” the United Nations resolution which endorses the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. According to a final declaration from their Tianjin summit, SCO member states stressed that “any attempts to misinterpret or arbitrarily reinterpret this resolution will undermine the authority of the Security Council.”
