The Chinese government says it hasn’t changed its approach to sanctions against Tehran following White House talk of cooperation.

Paul Richter Tribune Washington Bureau

Source:

April 13, 2010

WASHINGTON -China insisted today that it has not shifted its approach to Iran’s nuclear program, despite White House claims on Monday that Beijing had become more open to sanctions on Tehran.

Jiang Yu, spokeswoman for the Chinese foreign ministry, told reporters in Beijing that “China has always believed that sanctions and pressure cannot fundamentally resolve the issue” of Iran’s disputed nuclear program,” according to the official Xinhua news agency.

She said China “upholds its consistent stance on the Iran nuclear issue.” Beijing opposes Iran gaining nuclear weapons, and supports a “dual track strategy,” combining negotiations with pressure, she said

Jiang said the United Nations Security Council “should help ease the situation, and help promote the relevant side to properly resolve the Iran nuclear issue through dialogue and negotiation,” Xinhua reported.

On Monday, White House officials said that President Barack Obama had received President Hu Jintao’s promise to cooperate in developing a new round of sanctions against Iran.

“They’re prepared to work with us,” said Jeffrey Bader, a senior National Security Council official.

The sanctions are aimed at dissuading Tehran from proceeding with a nuclear program that many world powers believed is aimed at developing a nuclear weapon. Tehran insists it wants nuclear power only for peaceful purposes.

The Obama administration, and the Bush administration before it, have struggled to win commitments from China and Russia to cooperate in the campaign to keep Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

U.S. officials have repeatedly claimed progress in winning the two Security Council members to their side, only to see those nations seemingly head in a different direction days later.

The White House has recently been claiming that the Russian government has found some common ground with Washington on the issue. Yet last week, in an appearance with Obama in Prague, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev stressed that there were limits to the sanctions that Russia was willing to impose on Iran.

“There is no contradiction between continuing diplomatic efforts and at the same time working together on a sanctions resolution in New York,” a senior Obama administration official said today. “We believe a sanctions resolution is the best way to get back to dialogue and negotiations at some stage.”