"(China) hopes that the Iranian side will comprehensively and fully cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency and quickly make positive progress," Xinhua news agency quoted Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi as saying.

"The Chinese side is willing to continue to make efforts to push forward the peaceful resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue."

Yang's comments came in talks Friday with visiting Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Pour Mohammadi.

In the talks, Yang also reiterated Beijing's support for the international nuclear non-proliferation regime and its opposition to the proliferation of nuclear weapons, the report said.

Pour Mohammadi thanked China for its efforts in helping to resolve the row and pledged his government would cooperate with the UN nuclear watchdog, Xinhua said.

His visit came after other Iranian officials warned Wednesday that potential new UN sanctions against Tehran for pressing on with uranium enrichment would torpedo a deal struck with the IAEA in August for renewed nuclear inspections.

Iran maintains that its nuclear programme is aimed at generating electricity but the United States accuses Tehran of using it to hide work on developing atomic weapons.

The IAEA has been working since February 2003 to determine whether Iran's atomic programme is peaceful, but has yet to come to a final conclusion.

All rights reserved. � 2005 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.