Iranian demands raise fresh doubts as nuke talks resume

…With that as a backdrop, some regional analysts say covert support from China — one of the key signatories of the 2015 nuclear deal — has helped to keep the Iranian economy afloat over the past few years and may even have made President Raisi even less motivated to negotiate with Washington. At issue specifically are Chinese purchases of Iranian oil, which have steadily increased since President Biden arrived in office in January. Data compiled by United Against Nuclear Iran, a bipartisan advocacy group in New York, shows nearly 1 million barrels per day of Iranian crude were reaching China last spring, even as global oil prices were starting to climb sharply.