China: Iran Sanctions will 'Exacerbate' Situation

China said Wednesday new sanctions unveiled by Western states against Iran over its nuclear program would not resolve the issue but would instead "exacerbate" the situation.

"We believe pressuring and sanctions cannot fundamentally solve the Iranian nuclear issue. On the contrary, they will complicate and exacerbate the issue and intensify confrontation," said foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin.

The United States, Britain and Canada said in coordinated announcements Monday they were slapping additional sanctions on Iran targeting its financial and energy sectors, citing evidence that Tehran is pursuing nuclear weapons.

The evidence was outlined in a November 8 report by the United Nations' International Atomic Energy Agency.

Iran, however, has consistently denied it is seeking nuclear weapons, insisting its atomic program is to produce electricity for civilian purposes.

Britain, home to the world's biggest financial market in the City of London, said Monday it was "ceasing all contact" between its financial system and that of Iran.

Canada announced new sanctions that target "virtually all transactions" including with Iran's central bank, and also imposed an embargo on the country's petrochemical, oil and gas industry.

The United States, meanwhile, announced fresh sanctions against Iran's energy sector and warned firms against dealing with the Islamic republic's financial sector, naming the country "a primary money laundering concern.”

Liu on Wednesday called for further "dialogue and cooperation" between all parties involved "to properly settle the Iranian nuclear issue through negotiations.”

China is a key ally of Iran. They have become major economic partners in recent years, thanks partly to the withdrawal of Western companies in line with sanctions against the Islamic republic.

Iran's other ally Russia -- which, along with China, blocked any possibility of the new sanctions being put to the U.N. Security Council for wider adoption -- has called the Western measures "unacceptable and against international law.”