ASTANA - Chinese President Hu Jintao expressed the wish here Tuesday afternoon that Iran should carry out dialogue with the six nations as soon as possible.

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The six nations consist the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany.

He said under the current situation, Iran should "grasp all positive elements that are conducive to pushing forward the dialogue process."

Hu called for Iran to "take substantial steps in the respect of establishing trust" and "promote the process of dialogue."

Hu made the remarks as he met with Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad in this capital city of Kazakhstan on the eve of the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Both Hu and Ahmadinejad are to attend the summit to be held Wednesday.

Hu pointed out in the meeting that seeking comprehensive and proper resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue through dialogue and negotiation is the basic way to guarantee Iran's right of peaceful use of nuclear energy.

"This is not only in the interest of the Iranian side, but also conducive to the general situation of peace and stability in the Middle East region," Hu said.