China willing to continue safeguarding Iran nuke deal with all parties

Visiting Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Friday that China is willing to work with all parties to continue safeguarding the Iran nuclear deal.

Wang met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers’ meeting on Friday.

Whether the implementation of the Iran nuclear deal, officially the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), can be continued or not has aroused the attention of the international community, Wang said.

It has brought a new risk to and posed a new challenge for the situation in the Middle East, he said.

“The JCPOA is a multilateral deal which is verified and approved by the UN Security Council and accords the common interests of all parties and the international community,” said Wang.

“It must be respected and safeguarded so as to maintain the authority of the UN, the effectiveness of multilateral deals and the credibility of the international rules.”

China is willing to enhance communication and cooperation with all parties including Iran, and do best to continue safeguarding the deal in a bid to maintain peace and stability in the region and the world at large, Wang noted.

Zarif said Iran and China are strategic partners and China has played an important role in the hammering out and implementation of the JCPOA.

Iran is willing to continue safeguarding and implementing the nuclear deal and will continue to work with the parties concerned including China and European countries, the Iranian foreign minister said.

The US has unilaterally announced its pullout from the deal and also threatened to restart unilateral sanctions on Iran, which violates the related resolutions of the UN and is opposed by all parties, Zarif noted.