China and Russia stood by Iran on Friday after the United States demanded nuclear talks with Tehran, with senior Chinese and Russian diplomats saying dialogue should only resume based on "mutual respect" and all sanctions ought to be lifted.

In a joint statement issued after talks with Iran in Beijing, China and Russia also said they welcomed Iran's reiteration that its nuclear programme was exclusively for peaceful purposes, and that Tehran's right to peaceful uses of nuclear energy should be "fully" respected.

In 2015, Iran agreed to curb its nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions in a deal with the U.S., Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany. But in 2018, Donald Trump, a year into his first term as U.S. president, pulled out of the pact.

"(China, Russia and Iran) emphasised that the relevant parties should be committed to addressing the root cause of the current situation and abandoning sanction, pressure or threat of force," China's Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu told reporters after the meeting.

China, Russia and Iran also emphasised the necessity of terminating all "unlawful" unilateral sanctions, Ma said.

Ma's meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov and Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi came days after Tehran spurned U.S. "orders" to resume dialogue over the nuclear programme.

Last week, Trump said he had sent a letter to Iran's Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei proposing nuclear talks, adding that "there are two ways Iran can be handled: militarily, or you make a deal".

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian responded that he would not negotiate with the U.S. while being "threatened", and Iran would not bow to U.S. "orders" to talk.

Iran was further enraged after six of the United Nations Security Council's 15 members - the U.S., France, Greece, Panama, South Korea and Britain - held a closed-door meeting this week to discuss its nuclear programme. Tehran said the meeting was a "misuse" of the U.N. Security Council.

That meeting was also criticised by China, with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi saying on Friday that the "hasty" intervention by the Council was not helpful in building trust.

Despite Tehran's defiant rhetoric, engaging with the U.S. to hammer out a nuclear deal may be the more pragmatic option, with crippling sanctions weighing on the Iranian economy and stoking public unrest, according to Iranian officials.

NUCLEAR PROGRAMME

Iran has long denied that it is working on developing a nuclear weapon. But the International Atomic Energy Agency said last month that Iran was "dramatically" accelerating enrichment of uranium to near the roughly 90% weapons-grade level.

In February, Trump restored his "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran that includes efforts to drive its oil exports down to zero in order to stop it from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

"The Iranian nuclear programme is peaceful in nature," said Iran's Gharibabadi on Friday.

"It is under the surveillance of the International Atomic Energy Agency. Iran is receiving huge inspections from the IAEA, and our nuclear programme has never been diverted to non-peaceful purposes."

The main root cause of the current situation is the unilateral U.S. withdrawal from the 2015 pact, Gharibabadi said.

China hopes all parties will meet each other halfway and resume dialogue and negotiations as soon as possible, Wang told the Iranian and Russian ministers separately after the trilateral meeting.

The United States should show "sincerity" and return to talks with Iran as soon as possible, said Wang.

Separately, Iran's foreign ministry on Friday condemned new sanctions imposed by the United States on the Iranian oil minister and some Hong Kong-flagged vessels that are part of a "shadow fleet" that helps disguise Iranian oil shipments.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the new sanctions were "clear evidence of the falsehood... of repetitive claims by American officials about their readiness for negotiations", Iranian state media reported.

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China urges end to 'illegal' sanctions as it hosts Iran nuclear talks

China urged an end to "illegal" sanctions on Iran as it hosted Iranian and Russian diplomats on Friday for talks Beijing hopes will restart long-stalled negotiations on Tehran's nuclear programme.

The United States withdrew from a landmark 2015 deal, which imposed curbs on Tehran's nuclear development in return for sanctions relief, during US President Donald Trump's first term.

The Republican president has called for a new nuclear deal with Iran since his return to the White House in January, but Tehran says no such agreement is possible so long as punishing sanctions remain in place.

The effort to secure a pact was given new urgency last month when the UN nuclear watchdog said Iran had significantly increased its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

Beijing hosted Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov for talks on Friday it said it hoped would help "resume dialogue and negotiation at an early time".

Meeting the diplomats, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stressed "the comprehensive agreement on the Iranian nuclear issue is an important achievement achieved through dialogue and negotiation".

"Now the situation has reached a critical juncture again. We must buy time for peace, resolve disputes through political and diplomatic means, and oppose the use of force and illegal sanctions," he said.

And the United States should demonstrate "political sincerity and return to talks at an early date", said a statement from the Chinese foreign ministry, which outlined proposals for resolving the Iran nuclear issue.

"All parties should... refrain from actions that might escalate the situation," the statement added.

- 'Peaceful' nuclear programme -

Gharibabadi, in turn, hailed the "constructive" talks in Beijing and said Iran's nuclear programme "is peaceful in nature".

"But unfortunately, some countries are trying to create an unnecessary crisis in this regard," he said.

"The main root cause of the current situation is the unilateral withdrawal of the United States."

Gharibabadi told Iran's Mehr news agency that China and Russia had backed Iran's position that any new nuclear talks should "focus solely on the nuclear issue".

One of the reasons cited by Trump for abandoning the 2015 deal was that it did not seek to address Iran's ballistic missile programme which he argued posed a threat to the United States.

The Russian and Iranian officials met China's Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu earlier on Friday and "exchanged views on the Iran nuclear issue and other issues of common concern", Chinese state media said.

Ma reiterated after that meeting China's support for "political and diplomatic engagement and dialogue based on mutual respect".

"We emphasised the necessity of ending all illegal, unilateral sanctions," Ma told reporters.

Iran's ambassador to China said later on social media platform X the meeting was a "complete success".

The talks resulted in agreements on "trilateral cooperation on important international issues, including the need for the three countries to cooperate in confronting" US sanctions, he said.

The Kremlin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that "it is necessary to further continue diplomatic efforts" on Iran's nuclear programme, and condemned "illegal" sanctions against Tehran.

- 'Maximum pressure' -

Trump has reinstated his "maximum pressure" policy of sanctions against Iran, mirroring his approach during his first term.

He sent a letter to Tehran this week urging nuclear talks and warning of possible military action if it refuses.

Tehran said the letter, which Trump said was addressed to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was currently "being reviewed".

"Ultimately, the United States should lift the sanctions," Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview published by the government's official newspaper on Thursday.

Washington upped its pressure campaign the same day by imposing sanctions on Iranian Petroleum Minister Mohsen Paknejad.

The US Treasury Department also blacklisted the owners or operators of vessels it said were engaged in transporting Iranian oil to China.

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Britain warns Iran sanctions could be reimposed as UN Security Council meets

Britain warned on Wednesday that it would trigger a return of U.N. sanctions on Iran, if needed, to prevent it from getting a nuclear weapon as the Security Council met to discuss Tehran's expansion of its stock of uranium close to weapons grade.

Iran has denied wanting to develop a nuclear weapon.

However, it is "dramatically" accelerating enrichment of uranium to up to 60% purity, close to the roughly 90% weapons-grade level, the U.N. nuclear watchdog - the International Atomic Energy Agency - has warned.

Western states say there is no need to enrich uranium to such a high level under any civilian program and that no other country has done so without producing nuclear bombs. Iran says its nuclear program is peaceful.

"We are clear that we will take any diplomatic measures to prevent Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon, that includes the use of snapback (of sanctions), if needed," Britain's deputy U.N. Ambassador James Kariuki told reporters ahead of the meeting.

The closed-door meeting was called by six of the council's 15 members - the U.S., France, Greece, Panama, South Korea and Britain.

Iran's U.N. mission accused the United States of seeking to weaponize the U.N. Security Council "to escalate economic warfare against Iran," adding in a post on X: "This dangerous abuse must be rejected to protect the council's credibility."

The U.S. mission to the U.N. said in a statement after the council meeting that Iran was "the only country in the world without nuclear weapons producing highly enriched uranium, for which it has no credible peaceful purpose."

It accused Iran of defying the Security Council and violating IAEA obligations, calling on the council to "be clear and united in addressing and condemning this brazen behavior."

'SEIZE THE LIMITED TIME'

U.S. President Donald Trump last month restored a "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran in a bid to stop Tehran from building a nuclear weapon. But he also said he was open to a deal and was willing to talk to Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Trump wrote a letter to Iran calling for nuclear talks, which was delivered on Wednesday, but Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rejected holding negotiations.

China will hold a meeting on Friday in Beijing with Russia and Iran on the Iranian "nuclear issue", its foreign ministry said, with both nations sending their deputy foreign ministers.

"We still hope that we can seize the limited time we have before the termination date in October this year, in order to have a deal, a new deal so that the JCPOA can be maintained," China's U.N. Ambassador Fu Cong told reporters ahead of the Security Council meeting.

"Putting maximum pressure on a certain country is not going to achieve the goal," he said.

Iran reached a deal in 2015 with Britain, Germany, France, the U.S., Russia and China - known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action - that lifted sanctions on Tehran in return for restrictions on its nuclear program.

Washington quit the agreement in 2018 during Trump's first term as U.S. president, and Iran began moving away from its nuclear-related commitments.

Britain, France and Germany will lose the ability to trigger the so-called snap back of all international sanctions on Iran on October 18 when the 2015 U.N. resolution on the deal expires. Trump has directed his U.N. diplomats to work with allies to snap back international sanctions and restrictions on Iran.

Under the complex two-month JCPOA dispute resolution process, the European parties to the deal effectively have until early August to trigger a snapback of U.N. sanctions on Iran.

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What to know about tensions between Iran and the US as Trump sends a letter to its supreme leader

A letter U.S. President Donald Trump wrote to Iran's supreme leader in an attempt to jump-start talks over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear program has arrived in the Iranian capital.

While the text of the letter hasn't been published, its arrival comes as Trump levied new sanctions on Iran as part of his “maximum pressure” campaign targeting the country. He also suggested military action against Iran remained a possibility, while emphasizing he still believed a new deal could be reached.

Iran's 85-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has mocked Trump, but officials in his country also have offered conflicting signals over whether negotiations could take place.

Here's what to know about the letter, Iran's nuclear program and the overall tensions that have stalked relations between Tehran and Washington since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Why did Trump write the letter?

Trump dispatched the letter to Khamenei on March 5, then gave a television interview the next day in which he acknowledged sending it. He said: “I’ve written them a letter saying, ‘I hope you’re going to negotiate because if we have to go in militarily, it’s going to be a terrible thing.’” Since returning to the White House, the president has been pushing for talks while simultaneously ratcheting up sanctions and suggesting a military strike by Israel or the U.S. could target Iranian nuclear sites.

A previous letter from Trump during his first term drew an angry retort from the supreme leader.

But Trump’s letters to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in his first term led to face-to-face meetings, though no deals to limit Pyongyang’s atomic bombs and a missile program capable of reaching the continental U.S.

How has Iran reacted?

Iran has offered a series of seemingly contradictory responses. Khamenei himself said he wasn't interested in talks with a “bullying government.”

But Iranian diplomats including Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi earlier suggested that talks over guarantees that Tehran wouldn't seek a nuclear weapon could be possible. Araghchi, who took part in negotiations for Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal, later toughened his tone and said talks couldn't happen under U.S. pressure, following Khamenei's lead.

However, Araghchi still met with the Emirati diplomat carrying Trump's letter.

Meanwhile, Iran's Foreign Ministry on Thursday summoned ambassadors from France and Germany, as well as the British chargé d’affaires, to complain about them backing a closed-door Security Council meeting Wednesday at the United Nations.

Why does Iran's nuclear program worry the West?

Iran has insisted for decades that its nuclear program 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 program 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 300 kilograms (661 pounds). The last report by the International Atomic Energy Agency on Iran’s program put its stockpile at 8,294.4 kilograms (18,286 pounds) as it enriches a fraction of it to 60% purity.

U.S. intelligence agencies assess that Iran has yet to begin a weapons program, but has “undertaken activities that better position it to produce a nuclear device, if it chooses to do so.”

Why are relations so bad between Iran and the U.S.?

Iran was once one of the U.S.'s top allies in the Mideast under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who purchased American military weapons and allowed CIA technicians to run secret listening posts monitoring the neighboring Soviet Union. The CIA had fomented a 1953 coup that cemented the shah's rule.

But in January 1979, the shah, fatally ill with cancer, fled Iran as mass demonstrations swelled against his rule. The Islamic Revolution followed, led by Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, and created Iran's theocratic government.

Later that year, university students overran the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, seeking the shah's extradition and sparking the 444-day hostage crisis that saw diplomatic relations between Iran and the U.S. severed. The Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s saw the U.S. back Saddam Hussein. The “Tanker War” during that conflict saw the U.S. launch a one-day assault that crippled Iran at sea, while the U.S. later shot down an Iranian commercial airliner.

Iran and the U.S. have see-sawed between enmity and grudging diplomacy in the years since, with relations peaking when Tehran made a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. But Trump unilaterally withdrew America from the accord, sparking years of tensions in the Mideast that persist today.

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