China yesterday urged Iran to fully open its nuclear program to UN inspections, as a meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog moved toward slashing technical aid programs for Teheran because of its defiance of the UN Security Council.

"We welcome, support and call upon Iran to step up cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)," Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing told reporters in Beijing.

Li also reiterated China's support for a peaceful resolution to the Iranian dispute, adding that any option the Security Council pursues "should help peace and stability in the region."

In an effort to pressure Iran into suspending uranium enrichment, six key UN ambassadors began a week of negotiations on possible new sanctions but agreement is still elusive.

"I think the basic idea is to expand and strengthen the sanctions regime but how far we will go, I think there are some differences among member states," China's UN Ambassador Wang Guangya said after the opening round on Monday.

He said he expected to join envoys from the US, Britain, France, Russia and Germany for further talks on Tuesday.

The negotiations, at Britain's mission to the United Nations, moved to New York after senior foreign ministry officials consulted three times by telephone over the past week. On Saturday, they were unable to settle all their differences.

Both Wang and Russia's UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said the new resolution would probably give Iran 60 days to comply with demands that it halt its nuclear enrichment work.

The new resolution is a follow-up to one adopted by the Security Council on December 23, which imposed trade sanctions on sensitive nuclear materials and technology and froze assets of key Iranians after Teheran refused to halt enrichment work.

According to Germany's UN Ambassador Thomas Matussek, the discussions evolved around a mandatory travel ban on Iranian officials involved in the nuclear program, and an expansion of the list of banned nuclear material and technology Iran may import and export. Also under consideration is enlarging the list of Iranian officials whose assets can be frozen abroad.

But envoys said proposals for a total arms embargo would be dropped because of Russian objections, as would a ban on visas for students studying nuclear technology abroad.

Source: China Daily/agencies