China, Iran and Russia called for diplomacy over “pressure and threats” and an end to “all illegal unilateral sanctions” following talks on Tehran’s nuclear program Friday in Beijing, Chinese state media said.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei decried “bullying governments” in an apparent response to a letter the White House sent to Iran earlier in the week.

Iran says it would consider negotiations with the United States if talks were confined to concerns about the militarization of the country’s nuclear program.