China is set to hold a meeting on Friday with Russia and Iran regarding the Iranian “nuclear issue” in Beijing. The Chinese foreign ministry stated that the two nations are sending their deputy foreign ministers to attend this meeting.
Russia and Iran have deepened their diplomatic relations since the beginning of the war in Ukraine in 2022. Both nations signed a strategic cooperation treaty in January and maintain good relations with China.
A spokesperson for the foreign ministry announced that the meeting will be chaired by China’s Vice Foreign Minister, Ma Zhaoxu.
China’s meeting with Iran and Russia will follow a UN meeting on Iran’s nuclear expansion
The United Nations Security Council will hold a closed-door meeting in New York to discuss Iran’s expansion of its uranium stocks, which are close to weapons-grade.
Last week, Russia announced that its Deputy Foreign Minister, Sergei Ryabkov, had discussed Iran’s nuclear programme with Kazem Jalali, the country’s ambassador to Russia. This announcement followed reports that Russia has agreed to assist the Trump administration in communicating with Iran.
⚡️BREAKING
For the first time, Russia-China-Iran will hold a joint high-level meeting in Beijing in 2 days to discuss Iran’s nuclear program and Trump’s threats pic.twitter.com/ad0PecxDS3
— Iran Observer (@IranObserver0) March 12, 2025
Iran has long denied having an interest in developing nuclear weapons. Despite this, the UN atomic authority, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), has warned that Tehran is enriching uranium to a purity of up to 60%. The weapons-grade level of uranium is roughly 90%.
Since 2018 Iran has been moving away from its nuclear-related commitments with the West
In 2015, Iran reached an agreement with Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the United States known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. This deal lifted sanctions on Tehran in exchange for checks on Iran’s nuclear program.
Through this deal, Iran had agreed to reduce its stockpiling of enriched uranium by 98%, as well as limiting its uranium enrichment to a maximum of 3.67%. The IAEA was also entitled to inspect Iranian nuclear facilities.
During the first Trump administration, the US government argued that the deal was “one-sided”, and failed to address pressing matters. The Trump administration noted that the deal’s restrictions were time bound, and Iran could potentially resume its nuclear program when the deal expired.
“We’re at final moments. Can’t let them have a nuclear weapon.”
President Trump says “something’s going to happen very soon” with Iran as he pushes to negotiate a nuclear deal. pic.twitter.com/d8mNF3NpeV
— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 7, 2025
Additionally, the previous Trump administration noted that the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action did not limit Iran’s ballistic missile program and Tehran’s support for its proxies in the Middle East.
Since the United States left the deal, Iran has expanded its enrichment levels and nuclear capacities, going so far as to revamp operations at uranium enrichment facilities. The country has also begun limiting the IAEA’s access to its facilities.