China urges resumption of Iran nuclear talks

Amid stepped up US efforts to punish Iran for planning to domestically produce nuclear fuel for a research reactor, China calls for increased diplomacy to resolve the nuclear standoff.

“Dialogues and negotiations are the best ways to resolve this issue,” China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Ma Zhaoxu, said Thursday. “China is serious on safeguarding the effectiveness of the international system of nuclear non-proliferation.”

The Chinese official added that Beijing would contribute to an early resumption of the negotiations.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced Thursday that the country has produced its first batch of 20-percent enriched uranium, as it plans to supply the research reactor in Tehran, which produces medical isotopes.

The US, which accuses the country of seeking nuclear weaponry, has stepped up its anti-Iran rhetoric, calling on allies to back its initiative to impose fresh sanctions against the country over its nuclear program.

China, however, has argued that sanctions are not the way to pave ground for further negotiations on the issue.

Iran says its program is aimed at the civilian applications of the technology.