Asian countries share the European Union’s stance that the Iran nuclear deal should be preserved following the United States' withdrawal, a senior EU official said.
The accord on Iran's nuclear program was struck in 2015 between Tehran and six world powers, but the US abandoned the pact in May.
Other parties have remained committed, with the EU leading the campaign to shore up the deal by ensuring Tehran’s financial interests and non-parties, including Asian states, pushing on the political and diplomatic fronts to uphold the agreement, the website of EEAS reported.
EU foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, said on Thursday that Asian countries have always shown great interest in working to secure the full implementation of the deal, dubbed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
"I have always very much seen the interest and also exactly the same position that we have with our Asian partners on the need to maintain the JCPOA," she said upon arrival in Brussels to attend the Europe-Asia Meeting Summit (ASEM).
She highlighted the fact that Iran is not only a key player in the Middle East, but also a country with many "[shared] interests and links with Asia."
Asia's support for the nuclear deal, according to Mogherini, is obviously aimed at safeguarding security in the region.
The 12th ASEM Summit took place on October 18-19 in Brussels, Belgium.
The top EU diplomat had also suggested that the summit would cover JCPOA.
"We have our agenda, it's a very clear agenda that supports multilateralism, starting from the UN system, climate change action, trade—free and fair—non-proliferation and international agreements that support the non-proliferation global architecture," AFP quoted her as saying.
According to an AFP report, the EU also sought to muster support for the beleaguered Iran nuclear deal, which suffered a hammer blow when the US pulled out and reimposed sanctions on Iran, despite the desperate pleas of European allies.
> Asian Attitude
China, a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council from Asia and a signatory to the Iran pact, has been an outspoken proponent of the landmark agreement and announced almost immediately after the US withdrawal that it would stand by its commitment.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Geng Shuang, said at the time that Beijing would "maintain communication with all parties and continue to protect and execute the agreement fully".
China has reaffirmed backing for the accord on many occasions at the global level, including the United Nations General Assembly in late September.
Japan and India, which rely on Iran as a major supplier of crude oil, have also approved of Tehran’s decision to stick to the nuclear deal despite the US departure.
Soon after the US exit, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono declared Tokyo's continued support for the nuclear agreement in a phone conversation with his Iranian counterpart, Mohammed Javad Zarif.
India's Ministry of External Affairs also called on JCPOA participants in a statement to respect the Iran's right to "peaceful uses of nuclear energy".
"India has always maintained that Iranian nuclear issue should be resolved peacefully through dialogue and diplomacy by respecting Iran's right to peaceful uses of nuclear energy and international community's strong interest in the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program," the ministry said.
