China has said it will convene talks with Russia and Iran as the United States increases pressure on Tehran to agree to a new deal on its nuclear programme.

Beijing announced on Wednesday that it would host officials from Russia and Iran to discuss the issue later this week. The meeting will follow a closed-door session of the United Nations Security Council called by Western nations.

The increased focus on Iran’s nuclear programme comes amid renewed pressure from the US to push Tehran to agree to a deal that would prevent it from taking any steps towards acquiring nuclear weapons.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the trilateral meeting on the “nuclear issue” would be held in Beijing on Friday. Iran and Russia will send their deputy foreign ministers.

A spokesman from Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that the talks would focus on “developments related to the nuclear issue and the lifting of sanctions”.

Ties between Iran and Russia have deepened since the start of the Ukraine war in 2022, with a strategic cooperation treaty signed in January, and both have maintained good relations with China.