Chinese, Iranian FMs meet amid efforts to preserve Tehran’s nuclear deal

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif in Beijing on Tuesday amid efforts to preserve the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran. Zarif is leading a delegation that includes parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani and the ministers of finance and petroleum, as well as the CEO of the country’s central bank. Russia, Germany, Britain, France, China, and the EU have been trying to preserve the 2015 deal meant to keep Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon in exchange for sanctions relief after the unilateral withdrawal of the US last year. Prior to Larijani’s departure from Tehran, Xinhua quoted him as saying that Tehran and Beijing have “close and amicable” relations in diverse areas, and that both sides have enjoyed the support of each other in the international arena.