Updated on
Summary
US Vice President Joe Biden said that China would agree to a new round of UN sanctions against Iran over its suspect nuclear activities, despite having long held out against the move. China has been the main holdout among the five veto-wielding permanent members of the UN Security Council against slapping a fourth round of sanctions against Iran, arguing instead that more time and attention should be given to diplomacy. China will agree to sanctions, Biden said during an interview. This is the first time the entire world is unified that Iran is out of bounds... They are more isolated than they've ever been, with their own people and within the region. The Asian powerhouse has invested heavily in Iran's energy sector and filled the vacuum left by Western firms that have pulled out in the face of US sanctions and political pressure from US allies against companies doing business with Tehran. Israel and the West accuse Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons under the cover of what Tehran insists is an energy program for civilian, not military, purposes. Biden also assured that Israel, which considers Iran an existential threat, would not attack the Islamic republic without US permission.
