Special Report: G8 meets in Russia, Hu attends session

    ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, July 16 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao on Sunday urged various parties to resume negotiation to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue.

    Hu, who arrived at St. Petersburg on Sunday to attend the outreach session of the G8 summit, made the call when he met U.S. President George W. Bush.

    Hu and Bush discussed the Iranian nuclear issue during their talks, according to Chinese officials.

    China is against proliferation of nuclear weapons and holds that the issue should be properly resolved through diplomacy and negotiation, Hu said during the talks.

    What is pressing at present is to resume the negotiation as soon as possible, said Hu, adding that China would continue to play a constructive role in resolving the issue through peaceful means.

    Bush, on his part, said that the U.S. side agreed to resolving the Iranian nuclear issue through diplomacy and in a peaceful manner, urging Iran to respond to the initiative tabled by the six countries as soon as possible.

    In June this year, the United States, China, Britain, France, Russia and Germany offered Iran a package of incentives in a bid to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue. But so far Iran has made no official response to the offer. Enditem