BEIJING, March 6. /TASS/. China applauds the agreements between Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on the Iranian nuclear dossier and hopes that they will help create conditions for further talks on this matter, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Monday.
"China values the agreements reached between Iran and the IAEA on closer cooperation on the issue of settling the Iranian nuclear problem and hails the sides’ intention to continue efforts to settle the outstanding matters linked with the supervision guarantees through dialogue and consultations. <…> China hopes that these agreements will be implemented effectively and will help create conditions for promoting talks on the settlement of the Iranian nuclear problem," she said.
The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran nuclear deal, was signed by Iran, the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (Russia, the United Kingdom, China, the United States, and France) and Germany in 2015. Under the deal, Iran undertook to curb its nuclear activities and place them under the total control of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in exchange for the abandonment of the sanctions imposed previously by the United Nations Security Council, the European Union and the United States over its nuclear program.
The future of the deal was called into question after the United States’ unilateral withdrawal in May 2018. The United States’ current president, Joe Biden, has repeatedly signaled that Washington is ready to return to the nuclear deal.
At a meeting with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on March 4, visiting IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi expressed satisfaction with joint measures that had been worked out during his visit. The measures, in his words, are geared to establish cooperation between the IAEA and Iran. During his stay in Tehran, Grossi held two rounds of talks with Head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization Mohammad Eslami and met with Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.