BEIJING, 22 December, 2020, (TON): The foreign ministers of China and Russia say the United States should return to a 2015 multilateral nuclear agreement between Iran and major world powers "unconditionally" at an early date and lift sanctions against Iran as well as third-party entities and individuals.

The Russian and Chinese foreign ministers made the remarks while addressing a virtual meeting of foreign ministers of the remaining parties to the landmark deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), on Monday, which was presided over by European Union foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Monday that US withdrawal from the JCPOA and its so-called "maximum pressure" policy on Iran are the root causes of challenges pertaining to Tehran's nuclear program.

Wang said that, at present, the Iranian nuclear situation has come to a critical juncture. U.S. President-elect Joe Biden has made it clear that the United States has the willingness to return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Meanwhile, the United States continues to intensify its pressure on Iran.

The top Chinese diplomat also called on Iran to fully resume its nuclear commitments as per the JCPOA and proposed that the deal's signatories hold consultations in this regard as soon as possible so as to start the process of US returning to the agreement.

Also attending the meeting were Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab.

Under the circumstances, Wang put forward four suggestions on the Iran nuclear issue, the first of which is to unswervingly uphold the agreement. The second is to promote an early return of the US to the Iran nuclear deal. The third is to settle disputes fairly and objectively during the implementation of the deal, while the fourth is to properly handle regional security issues.

Meanwhile, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who also addressed the meeting, said for his part that the US should not put forward any preconditions for its return to the JCPOA, Russian Foreign Ministry quoted him as saying.

"We believe that the US return to the JCPOA should be without any preconditions. Our partners and we are ready for meaningful work in this area, and we are ready to help the Americans to step on the path of correction. This is in our shared interest," Lavrov added.

President Donald J. Trump withdrew the United States from the JCPOA agreement in May 2018, saying it failed to address Iran’s ballistic missile program and its role in regional wars. The US reimposed sanctions on Iran.