China, Russia and Iran call for end to US sanctions

Representatives of China, Russia and Iran have called for an end to US sanctions on Iran over its rapidly advancing nuclear programme and urged new multinational talks on the issue.

The talks are the latest attempt to broach the matter and follow American President Donald Trump writing to Iran’s supreme leader in an attempt to jump-start talks.

The letter, which has not been made public, was offered as Mr Trump levied new sanctions on Iran as part of his “maximum pressure” campaign that holds out the possibility of military action – while emphasising he still believes a new deal could be reached.

Officials from the three nations who met Friday morning “emphasised the necessity of terminating all unlawful unilateral sanctions”, China’s vice foreign minister Ma Zhaoxu read from a joint statement, flanked by Russia’s deputy foreign minister Ryabkov Sergey Alexeevich and Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi.

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi was due to meet the representatives later in the day.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has mocked Mr Trump, saying he was not interested in talks with a “bullying government”, although Iranian officials have offered conflicting signals over the possibility of negotiations.

Mr Trump sent a letter to Khamenei in 2019 with no apparent effect on rising tensions.

China and Russia are both permanent members of the UN Security Council, along with France and the UK, that took part in the original 2015 Iran nuclear deal preliminary framework agreement alongside Germany and the European Union.

Mr Trump withdrew America from the accord in 2018, setting in motion years of attacks and tensions in the wider Middle East.

They are also seen as sharing a joint interest in diminishing the role of the US and other liberal democracies in determining world events in favour of their own highly authoritarian systems.

Iran insists its nuclear programme is peaceful. However, its officials increasingly threaten to pursue a nuclear weapon. Iran now enriches uranium to near weapons-grade levels of 60%, the only country in the world without a nuclear weapons programme to do so.

Under the original 2015 nuclear deal, Iran was allowed to enrich uranium only up to 3.67% purity and to maintain a uranium stockpile of 661lbs.

The last report by the International Atomic Energy Agency on Iran’s programme put its stockpile at 18,286lbss as it enriches a fraction of it to 60% purity.

While Iran has maintained it will not negotiate under duress, its economy has been savaged by the US sanctions. Protests over women’s rights, the economy and Iran’s theocracy in recent years have also shaken its government.

China has sought to become more involved in Middle Eastern affairs and a year ago hosted talks leading to the full restoration of diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran.