China is hosting diplomats from Iran and Russia for talks on Tehran’s nuclear program Friday as Beijing aims to position itself as a power broker on an issue seen internationally as a pressing security concern.

China and Russia stood by Iran on Friday after the United States demanded nuclear talks with Tehran, with senior Chinese and Russian diplomats saying dialogue should only resume based on "mutual respect" and all sanctions ought to be lifted.

China, Russia and Iran have called for an end of all “illegal and unilateral sanctions” and urged for abandoning “threats of force” against Tehran, as per a joint statement, following talks between the three countries in Beijing on Friday.

Analysts say the choice of Beijing as the venue signals Iran’s and Russia’s growing reliance on China as a diplomatic counterweight to US pressure

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced on Wednesday that US President Donald Trump has sent a message, but Tehran has yet to receive it. He stated that it is expected to reach them through an Arab country.

In a joint statement after talks with Iran, China and Russia also said they welcomed Iran's reiteration that its nuclear programme was exclusively for peaceful purposes.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov discussed international efforts to resolve the situation around Iran's nuclear programme with Iranian ambassador Kazem Jalali, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Friday.

China said it would host nuclear talks with Iran and Russia, days after US President Donald Trump urged Tehran to negotiate a new deal over its atomic work or face military action.

China, Iran and Russia called for diplomacy over “pressure and threats” and an end to “all illegal unilateral sanctions” following talks on Tehran’s nuclear program Friday in Beijing, Chinese state media said.

A letter U.S. President Donald Trump wrote to Iran's supreme leader in an attempt to jump-start talks over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear program has arrived in the Iranian capital.