Merkel urges China to use influence on Iran

BEIJING: German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged China on Thursday to use its influence to persuade Iran to give up its nuclear weapons programme, at the start of a three-day visit when she will also seek China's support for the ailing euro.

Merkel is expected to make the case for tighter sanctions on Iran, originally proposed by the United States and designed to prevent it from developing nuclear weapons. She said she has already had "long discussions" with President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao on Iran sanctions.

"If we talk about the European sanctions against Iran, the question is how China can make better use of its influence to make Iran understand that the world must not have another power with nuclear weapons," Merkel told an audience at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Merkel's China visit illustrates the delicate nature of EU-China relations, where Europe pushes China to sacrifice its commercial interests to help on Iran while at the same time asking for its help in resolving a worsening debt crisis.

Indeed, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao appeared to reject the pressure to do more on Iran, telling journalists later in the day that China objected to Western nations politicising the "normal commercial relationship" it has with the Islamic Republic, echoing language China has used before.

Wen also said that China was considering greater involvement in the stability funds that have been set up to help pull Europe out of its deepening debt crisis.

China, with its $3.2 trillion worth foreign exchange reserves, is often seen as a potential source for the funds that are needed to bail out some European governments. – Reuters