U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says China is under pressure to accept new sanctions against Iran over Tehran's refusal to reveal details of its nuclear program -- and whether it is pursuing nuclear weapons.
Clinton spoke about what she sees as the destabilizing impact a nuclear-armed Iran would have in the Persian Gulf region, threatening the flow of oil and other raw materials to China.
Iran is a major oil supplier to China.
Clinton was speaking in Paris where she met with senior French officials to discuss, among other matters, the threat posed by a nuclear-armed Iran.
Iran has frustrated the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, along with Germany, by backing off on a deal that would provide Tehran with fuel for its nuclear research reactor in exchange for its stockpile of low-enriched uranium.
But Friday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency said a deal with Iran on nuclear enrichment remains possible.
Both Yukiya Amano and Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki were in Davos and both men said a proposal remains "on the table."
Amano's comments were his first on the Iranian nuclear issue since he replaced Mohamed Elbaradei as head of the International Atomic Energy Agency two months ago.
Iran continues to insist its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
