MOSCOW/BEIJING. March 10 (Interfax) - China takes seriously the compliance of all interested parties with the requirements set by the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) regarding the Iranian nuclear program and is ready to cooperate with these parties, Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui said in an interview with Interfax.
"China is closely monitoring the Iran nuclear problem and is constantly and actively promoting the relevant political and diplomatic settlement process, [...] it will be maintaining close interaction with all parties, including Russia, Iran, and the United States," the ambassador said.
Zhang noted that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi underlined at a meeting of foreign ministers from the JCPOA signatory states in December 2020 that all parties must strictly comply with the agreement and proposed that an international conference involving parties to the JCPOA and the United States be held to begin the process of the United States' return to the agreement. The European Union has recently put forward practical proposals in this regard.
"China expresses its support and expects the United States and Iran to focus on the mutual resumption of the fulfillment of this agreement at the conference, seeking to achieve quick results," the diplomat said. In his words, the current situation with the Iranian nuclear program "is going through a vital stage of co-existence of favorable opportunities and problems."
China has always thought that the U.S. return to the JCPOA and the lifting of sanctions against Iran "will serve as a key to the resolution of the Iranian nuclear impasse," he said.
"Russia plays an extremely important role in the Iranian nuclear issue. China values high the substantial efforts taken by Russia to assist in the resolution of the problem of Iranian nuclear weapons and is ready to maintain close interaction and coordination with Russia in this area," Zhang said.