China on Wednesday called for an international agreement on Iran’s nuclear program to be upheld following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s latest accusations about Iran’s past nuclear activities.
Foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China noted that the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency has certified on 10 separate occasions that Iran is honoring the agreement and that strict inspection measures are in place to ensure compliance.
“What is pressing now, is that all relevant parties should bear in mind the large picture and long-term interest, and faithfully implement and uphold” the agreement, Hua told reporters at a regularly scheduled news conference.
China, one of five veto-wielding permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, helped conclude the 2015 agreement that lifted some economic sanctions on Iran in return for it accepting international monitoring to ensure it wasn’t developing a nuclear bomb.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the U.S. will discuss Israel’s purported evidence with the other parties ahead of a decision by President Donald Trump on whether to abandon the deal.
Hua said it is urgent that “all relevant parties should bear in mind the large picture and long-term interest, and faithfully implement and uphold the agreement.”
(AP)