Iran, Russia, China discuss Tehran’s nuclear programme at Beijing meeting

Diplomats from Iran, Russia, and China are convening in Beijing to discuss Tehran’s nuclear program, potentially paving the way for negotiations after years of postponement. Beijing stated that the three nations aim to discover a “diplomatic” resolution to Iran’s nuclear situation, as reported by Chinese state media on Friday.

“In the current situation, we believe that all parties should maintain calm and restraint to avoid escalating the Iran nuclear situation, or even walking towards confrontation and conflict,” China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters before the meeting.

According to Chinese media, the gathering included Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov, and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi, who “shared perspectives on the Iran nuclear matter and other shared concerns.”

In 2018, during his first year as United States president, Donald Trump pulled out of a significant agreement that Iran signed in 2015 with the US, Russia, China, Britain, France, Germany, and the European Union, whereby Tehran consented to limit its nuclear program in return for the removal of international sanctions.

Tehran maintained its adherence to the agreement, which was seen as a significant achievement for the administration of then-US President Barack Obama; however, it started to gradually diminish its obligations after Trump terminated the agreement.

The gathering in Beijing involving the three diplomats comes after a number of initiatives from Trump since he re-entered the White House in January to restart nuclear discussions with Tehran. This week, the US president sent a letter to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, urging for new negotiations while also cautioning that the US reserved the right to undertake military action against the nation’s nuclear program.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that he would not engage in negotiations with the US while feeling “threatened,” and Iran would not submit to US “demands” to discuss.

Iran was even more infuriated after six of the 15 members of the United Nations Security Council – the US, France, Greece, Panama, South Korea, and the United Kingdom – convened behind closed doors this week to talk about its nuclear program. Tehran described the gathering as a “misappropriation” of the UN Security Council.

Separately on Friday, Iran also slammed the US for “hypocrisy” after Washington announced new sanctions targeting its oil minister, saying they were “another clear proof of the falsity of these statements and another sign of its hostility to development”.

Ayatollah Khamenei maintains Tehran does not have or want nuclear weapons, but a recent report from the International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium was close to the requirements for a nuclear bomb.