(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-11-03 21:24

TASHKENT - China urged Iran Saturday to further cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and create favorable conditions for further talks on the nuclear issue.

"China respects Iran's rights of the peaceful use of the nuclear power and stands for the maintenance of the international non-proliferation system," Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said in his meeting with Iran's First Vice President Parviz Davoodi on the sideline of the sixth Meeting of Prime Ministers of the Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

Wen said peaceful negotiation would be the best way to resolve the nuclear issue and he hoped that Iran could further demonstrate its flexibility, according to a press release from the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

China will continue its effort to push forward the peaceful resolution of the issue, Wen said.

Davoodi briefed Wen about the latest developments and reiterated that Iran was developing nuclear power for peaceful purposes, adding that Iran remains committed to cooperate with the IAEA.

Wen arrived in the Uzbek capital of Tashkent on Friday for a two-day official visit and attending the SCO prime ministers meeting, which opened on the same day.

The SCO, a regional organization founded in June 2001, comprises China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, with Pakistan, Mongolia, Iran and India holding observer status.