Beijing calls for lifting Iran sanctions, pushes for negotiations

China on Wednesday, July 1, called on the United States and Iran to advance negotiations toward a comprehensive resolution of their conflict, as diplomatic contacts continued in Qatar.

Speaking to reporters in Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said China “has always believed that unilateral sanctions on Iran should be lifted at an early date.”

“We hope the US and Iran will jointly implement (Islamabad) Memorandum of Understanding which has already been signed and move negotiations forward to promote a comprehensive solution… at an early date,” Guo said.

His remarks came as Qatar hosted separate delegations from the United States and Iran for talks on Tuesday and Wednesday.

U.S. envoys traveled to Doha after President Donald Trump said on Monday that Iran had requested a meeting in the Qatari capital.

Iran, however, denied that any direct talks with Washington had been scheduled, while saying that consultations through intermediaries were ongoing.

By Tamilla Hasanova