China stresses dialogue, negotiation

CHINA: A solution that satisfies all parties’ concerns through dialogue and negotiation is the right course for the settlement of the Iranian nuclear issue, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang early Thursday morning.

Qin made the remarks when commenting on a new UN resolution on the Iranian nuclear issue, which prohibits Iran from investing abroad in nuclear and enrichment operations and imposes binding new restrictions on Iran’s import of conventional arms.

The resolution was the fourth set of UN sanctions against Iran since December 2006, with 12 votes in favor. Brazil and Turkey, two non-permanent members of the Security Council, voted against the draft resolution while Lebanon, another non-permanent member, abstained.

“China always holds it is the right way to address the Iranian nuclear issue through dialogue, negotiation and other diplomatic means to seek a solution that satisfies the concerns of all parties”, said Qin.

China’s consideration in addressing the issue is to maintain the validity of the international nuclear non-proliferation mechanism and safeguard peace and stability in the Middle East, Qin said, adding China supports the dual-track strategy for resolving the issue.

The new resolution and a joint statement of the foreign ministers of six countries expressed the concerns of the international community over the Iranian nuclear issue and their expectations to resolve the issue through diplomatic negotiation at an early date, Qin said.

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany on Wednesday reiterated a call for “an early negotiated solution” to the Iranian nuclear issue.

The appeal was made in a joint statement issued by the foreign ministers of the six countries on Wednesday’s adoption of the new UN sanction resolution. Beijing, Thursday, Xinhua