China calls on Iran to suspend uranium enrichment

BEIJING (Reuters) – Iran should suspend all uranium
enrichment, China said on Tuesday, as Russian and Iranian
nuclear negotiators were to hold a second day of talks to try
to strike a deal to ease international concerns that Tehran
wants a nuclear bomb.

“We support Iran and Russia holding nuclear negotiations
and we hope the negotiations can achieve positive results,”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao told a regular
news conference.

“Given current developments, China hopes Iran will restore
suspension of all activities relating to uranium enrichment and
create the conditions for appropriately resolving the Iran
nuclear issue through peaceful negotiations.”

Iran and Russia are discussing a Russian offer to enrich
uranium for Iranian power plants on its own soil — seen by
some as the last chance to defuse the row over Iran’s nuclear
ambitions before Western governments seek sanctions.