China on Thursday called on relevant parties to seize the opportunity for the early resumption of dialogue on the Iran nuclear issue.

According to media reports, Catherine Ashton, EU foreign policy chief,received a response from Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili on Wednesday, a move the West had demanded was a precondition for the resumption of talks. Ashton sent the letter in October last year.

"China has been deploying diplomatic efforts on Iran all the while," Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin said at a regular press briefing.

Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu paid a two-day visit to Iran on Sunday, said Liu.

During the visit, Ma urged Iran to respond to Ashton's letter, restore nuclear talks with the P5+1 partners -- Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States and Germany, and enhance cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

China's call met with a positive response from Iran during Ma's visit, Liu said, adding that China appreciated Iran's prompt reply to the EU.

"We hope related parties could snap up this opportunity to restart the dialogue between Iran and the P5+1 partners as soon as possible, so as to pull the issue back on the track of dialogue and cooperation," Liu said.

China will continue to play a constructive role in seeking a peaceful solution to the Iran nuclear issue, he added.

Liu said China has also taken note of reports about Iran's nuclear achievements.

At a ceremony held in Tehran, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad unveiled nuclear fuel rods, a new generation of centrifuges and a number of radioactive medicines for the treatment of cancer.

He also put a homemade fuel rod made out of 20-percent enriched uranium into the core of the Tehran Research Reactor.

Liu said that Iran, as a member of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), has the right to peacefully use nuclear power, as well as the international obligation to comply with the treaty.

The cooperation between Iran and the IAEA should also be reinforced in order to restore the international community's faith in the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear development program, he noted.

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