China at UN urges US to forswear force, return Iran nuclear issue to diplomacy

China called on the United States on Thursday to rule out the use or threat of force and to pursue a diplomatic settlement of the Iranian nuclear question, with a senior Chinese diplomat telling the UN Security Council that Washington's past actions lie at the root of the impasse.

Speaking at a council briefing on the issue, Sun Lei, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, said repeated hostilities in the Middle East have inflicted serious harm and losses on the peoples of the region, Iran among them, and that the fallout continues to widen in ways that work against the wider international interest.

Sun traced the difficulty of resolving the nuclear file to what he described as the United States' unilateral exit from the comprehensive Iranian nuclear agreement, its two uses of force against Iran during the negotiating process, and its pursuit of a maximum-pressure policy. Parties should not put the cart before the horse, he said.

He urged Washington to make an unambiguous commitment against using force again, to enter into sincere negotiations with Iran, and to ensure that any agreement reached is implemented effectively.

The Chinese envoy also pressed the parties concerned to abandon the use or threatened use of force, to resume implementation of the US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding as soon as possible, and to steer the nuclear issue back toward a political and diplomatic track.

Sun said China has consistently stood on the side of peace and dialogue, and that as a participant in the Iran nuclear deal and a permanent member of the Security Council it will keep working with other parties to advance a political settlement, uphold the international nuclear non-proliferation regime, and promote stability in the Middle East.