Russian and China — both parties to the 2015 nuclear deal — have once again backed Tehran’s call for an effective removal of the sanctions imposed by the United States on the Iranian nation in the aftermath of Washington’s withdrawal from the landmark accord.

Senior diplomats from Iran, Russia and China, who are in Vienna for negotiations on a potential revitalization of the nuclear deal, held a trilateral meeting at Tehran’s permanent mission to the UN organizations in the Austrian capital.

The Russian and Chinese officials hailed Iran for playing an active role in advancing the broader Vienna talks between Iran the P4+1 group of signatories to the nuclear deal, formally called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The pair supported Iran’s demand for an effective removal of the sanctions the US imposed against the Iranian nation after abandoning the JCPOA in May 2018 in violation of international law.

The three further discussed and coordinated their positions on the talks and held consultations on a number of important issues related to the termination of the sanctions and nuclear issues.

Meetings and consultations between delegations of Iran and the P4+1 group of countries continue in Vienna within the framework of trilateral working groups and bilateral and multilateral meetings at different levels.

Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, who heads the Iranian delegation to the Vienna talks, on Tuesday held meetings with Political Director of the European External Action Service Enrique Mora and the heads of the three European countries’ delegations to the negotiations.

The diplomatic process in Vienna has been underway since early April with the purpose of finding ways to bring the United States back to the JCPOA and prepare the ground for its full implementation.

Under former President Donald Trump, the US withdrew from the JCPOA and initiated a “maximum pressure” policy against Iran, prompting Tehran to take remedial measures by gradually reducing its nuclear commitments under the deal.

Besides re-imposing the anti-Iran sanctions lifted by the JCPOA, the US targeted the Iranian nation with several sets of additional bans under new pretexts and labels.

Now, with Trump gone, the new US administration under President Joe Biden says it seeks to rejoin the deal, but it has so far refused to take meaningful action to regain Iran’s trust and come back to compliance.