TEHRAN - Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi has said that Chinese experts are welcome to visit Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Iran is ready to receive nuclear experts from China to visit the country’s nuclear sites so that they can become familiar with Iran’s nuclear program, Salehi stated at a press conference in Beijing on Monday.
This invitation is extended while no other country in the world would allow experts from other countries to visit their nuclear installations, Salehi added.
Asked if Iran would continue producing uranium enriched to a purity level of 20 percent, the Iranian foreign minister said that Iran, like other signatories to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, has the right to enrich uranium to meet its needs.
Iran is enriching uranium to 5 percent to provide the nuclear fuel required by the Bushehr nuclear power plant and is producing 20 percent enriched uranium to meet the Tehran research reactor’s need for fuel, he added.
Salehi also said that Iran asked other countries to provide it with 20 percent enriched nuclear fuel, and a trilateral declaration was even signed in this regard.
However, the declaration was not implemented, he added.
On May 17, 2010, Iran, Turkey, and Brazil issued a declaration, according to which Iran was to ship 1200 kilograms of its low-enriched uranium to Turkey to be exchanged for 120 kilograms of 20 percent enriched nuclear fuel to power the Tehran research reactor, which produces radioisotopes for cancer treatment. According to the agreement, the exchange was to take place in Turkey under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency and Iran.
Iran supports establishment of Asian Union
On Monday, the Iranian foreign minister also delivered a speech at a meeting with a number of foreign diplomats based in China and several Chinese intellectuals, in which he expressed Iran’s support for the establishment of an Asian Union.
The Islamic Republic of Iran has always supported efforts to strengthen cooperation among Asian countries through the establishment of an Asian Union, Salehi stated.
The proposal for the establishment of an Asian Union was first made by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the opening ceremony of the 9th ministerial meeting of the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD), which was held in Tehran on November 8, 2010.
Iranian, Chinese FMs meet
Salehi also met with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi in Beijing on Monday.
During his meeting with Yang, Salehi said that Iran and China are two influential Asian countries and can complement each other well.
The volume of trade between Tehran and Beijing is currently $30 billion, Salehi said, adding that the two countries should explore ways to increase the volume of bilateral trade.
Commenting on the latest developments in the Middle East and North Africa, Salehi stated that Iranian and Chinese officials can hold consultations on a number of issues, including the double-standard approaches adopted by certain countries toward global issues, their unwarranted interference in other countries’ affairs, regional peace and security, the problems facing Middle Eastern countries, and human rights.
Salehi also extended an invitation to the Chinese foreign minister to pay a visit to Iran.
Yang thanked Salehi for visiting China ahead of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Tehran and Beijing.
The Islamic Republic of Iran and the People’s Republic of China established diplomatic relations on August 16, 1971.
He described the Islamic Republic of Iran as a great and progressive country, saying China attaches great significance to its comprehensive relations with Iran.
“Political trust between the two countries has improved,” Yang said, adding that every effort must be made to strengthen bilateral relations.
Today, Salehi will depart from Beijing and travel to Bali, Indonesia, where he will participate in the 16th foreign ministerial meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement, which opened yesterday and runs until Friday.