UNITED NATIONS, June 24 (Xinhua) -- It is the United States that started the Iranian nuclear crisis, said a Chinese envoy on Tuesday, in response to accusations against Iran at a Security Council meeting.

China has noted that some members of the Security Council have done nothing but accuse Iran of violating its non-proliferation obligations, in an attempt to justify the military actions of Israel and the United States, said Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations.

"Here, China wishes to remind those countries of the following basic facts: it is none other than the United States that started the Iranian nuclear crisis," he said.

The United States unilaterally withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018. Thereafter, it reinstated and escalated unilateral sanctions against Iran and adopted measures of "maximum pressure," which prevented Iran from enjoying the economic dividends conferred by the agreement and forced Tehran to scale back its commitments under the agreement, Fu said.

It is again the United States, at the expense of its own credibility, launched military strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, undermining the negotiation process it initiated, leading the Iranian nuclear issue to yet another impasse, and resulting in an abrupt escalation of the regional situation, he said.

Iran's sincerity in resolving the nuclear crisis should be valued, said the Chinese ambassador.

Up till today, Iran continues to fulfill its nuclear non-proliferation obligations and implement the comprehensive safeguards agreement. Iran has repeatedly stated that it does not seek to develop nuclear weapons, said Fu.

Tehran conducted several rounds of professional and pragmatic negotiations with the United States in a constructive manner and never abandoned its diplomatic efforts. However, some countries, citing the report of the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in a one-sided manner and ignoring the positive aspects of Iran's cooperation with the agency, pushed for the adoption of a resolution by the IAEA Board of Governors without adequate consultations. That jeopardized the atmosphere of dialogue while intensifying tension and confrontation, he said. "Those countries should reflect hard on the adverse consequences of their irresponsible move."

Israel and the United States, on the grounds of "possible future threats," resorted to the use of force against Iran, in serious violation of international law and Iran's sovereignty. Striking Iranian nuclear facilities that are placed under the IAEA safeguards sets a bad precedent, which threatens the international non-proliferation regime. China, once again, unequivocally condemns this, said Fu.

The aforementioned acts have also undermined diplomatic efforts to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue and created a high degree of uncertainty about the implementation of Security Council Resolution 2231. China is gravely concerned, he said. ■