China, Russia and Iran hold talks in Beijing as Trump pushes for new nuclear deal with Tehran

CNN — 

China is hosting diplomats from Iran and Russia for talks on Tehran’s nuclear program Friday as Beijing aims to position itself as a power broker on an issue seen internationally as a pressing security concern.

China’s Executive Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu sat down with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi in the Chinese capital for a meeting “on the Iranian nuclear issue,” state media reported.

The talks come as countries face pressure to find diplomatic solutions – or trigger a return to sanctions – as a key deadline from a 2015 Iran nuclear deal looms.

President Donald Trump, who pulled the United States out of that agreement during his first term in office, is also pushing for a new deal, while European powers have held multiple rounds of talks with Tehran in recent months on the issue.

There is an increasing sense of urgency around finding a diplomatic path to rein in Iran’s nuclear program amid conflict in the Middle East. The United Nations nuclear watchdog warns that Iran has rapidly expanded its stock of what is considered near-bomb-grade uranium. Iran denies it wants a nuclear bomb and insists that its nuclear energy program is “entirely peaceful.”

It’s onto this stage that China now steps with its own diplomatic push, which observers say fits with Beijing’s aim to position itself as an alternative global leader to the US – a goal Chinese leaders see more opportunity to achieve as Trump shakes up foreign policy with his “America First” agenda.

“China is increasingly motivated to deepen its involvement (in the Iran nuclear issue) to safeguard its interests, expand its regional influence and reinforce its image as a responsible global power,” said Tong Zhao, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace think tank in Washington.

By having both Russia and Iran in the room, China “may also aim to highlight the significance of non-Western approaches to resolving global challenges,” he added.

China’s Executive Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu (center) hosts Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi (left) and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov in Beijing on Friday. Courtesy CCTV