Iran Senior Envoy To Discuss Nuclear Issue In Beijing

BEIJING (AP)–Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator will visit China this week despite Tehran’s defiance over sanctions imposed by the U.N. Security Council for its nuclear program, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said Thursday.

Ali Larijani’s two-day trip beginning Thursday will include talks with Chinese officials, said ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao.

He didn’t give any details but said the meetings will center around discussions on “the Iranian nuclear issue, bilateral relations as well as international issues of common interest.”

While China has strong trade ties with oil-rich Iran, it is also a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, which voted unanimously to bar all countries from selling materials and technology to Iran that could contribute to its nuclear and missile programs. It also froze the assets of 10 Iranian companies and 12 individuals related to those programs.

Earlier this week, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad scorned the sanctions, saying that Tehran had humiliated the U.S. in the past and would do so again.

Washington has led the drive to stop Iran from enriching uranium – a process that produces the material for either nuclear reactors or bombs. Iran denies that it seeks to build atomic weapons, saying its nuclear program is limited to the generation of electricity.