China and Russia joined Iran in denouncing U.S. sanctions and backed efforts to restore a landmark nuclear deal with Tehran that President Donald Trump abandoned in his first term and now wants to replace.

The three countries — all sanctioned by the U.S. to varying degrees — stressed the need to end unilateral restrictions and urged the resumption of international talks over Iran’s atomic activities at a meeting in Beijing on Friday, according to a joint statement.

Russia and China were key participants in the Obama-era agreement that restricted Iran’s nuclear activity in exchange for sanctions relief, before Trump’s withdrawal in 2018. The U.S. has long been concerned Iran is capable of building a nuclear weapon if it chooses to do so, something Iranian officials have denied, saying the work is for civilian purposes.

As the standoff drags on, Iran has expanded its stocks of near-bomb grade enriched uranium while Washington has toughened its sanctions.

China’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Ma Zhaoxu hosted Friday’s meeting, which was also attended by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi. A separate meeting included Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

“Political and diplomatic engagement and dialog based on the principle of mutual respect remains the only viable and practical option,” Ma told reporters after the meeting.

Last week, Trump reiterated his interest in striking a new nuclear deal with Iran and warned the only alternative for the Islamic Republic was to face military action.

The Beijing gathering follows a flurry of diplomatic activity on Iran’s nuclear program as world powers try to evade another crisis, at a time when wars in the Middle East and Ukraine are posing risks to energy prices and the global economy.

William Figueroa, assistant professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands who studies China and the Middle East, described the meeting as “diplomatic maneuvering.”

“It’s a strong rejection of Trump’s position with the support of allies,” he said, adding that the position didn’t represent a shift in policy.

Iran has already had at least two rounds of preliminary nuclear talks with diplomats from the UK, France and Germany in Geneva in recent months. Trump also wrote a letter addressed to the Iranian leadership which was received in Tehran on Wednesday via a top official from the United Arab Emirates.

The contents of the missive aren’t known and there’s been no official response.

Critical juncture

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has dismissed Trump’s call for talks as a “trick” designed to lead his country toward more sanctions.

The U.S.’s latest raft of penalties on Iran were announced on Thursday and include a sanction on Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad.

The participants in Beijing emphasized the need for all countries to abstain from actions that would undermine the inspection activities of the International Atomic Energy Agency monitors still working in Iran. The United Nations watchdog last month reported a surge in nuclear activity in Iran over the past few months.

“The situation has reached a critical juncture again. We must buy time for peace, resolve disputes through political and diplomatic means, and oppose the use of force and illegal sanctions,” Yi, who also met with Ryabkov and Gharibabadi, told reporters.

European countries party to the 2015 nuclear deal — known formally as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action — have set plans in motion to reimpose United Nations Security Council Sanctions when they expire in October. Should they do so, Iran has warned it could leave the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Iran’s departure from the NPT — the key arms control treaty developed during the Cold War — would significantly increase the risk of conflict, because Tehran would no longer be bound by international inspections or prohibited from developing a weapon.

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With assistance from Allen Wan.

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