U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice hosted talks and a dinner for her counterparts from Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany in a bid to find some common ground on their approach to Iran's nuclear program.

The six ministers spent two hours in the presidential suite of New York's Waldorf Astoria hotel, far exceeding the 45 minutes originally planned for their discussions.

The ministers were accompanied by interpreters but no aides for the talks, which continued over dinner with staff present, said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack.

The United States has been pushing for a tough UN Security Council resolution to force Iran to halt uranium enrichment activities but Russia and China have objected punitive measures against Iran.

Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing said that China adheres to international nonproliferation system and seeks to safeguard peace and stability in the Middle East.

China stands for earnest implementation of the resolutions adopted by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the presidential statement by the UN Security Council on the issue, he said.

Li expressed the hope that Iran would engage in full cooperation with the IAEA and clarify outstanding issues to regain the trust of the international community.

Li stressed that under the current circumstance the international community should try to peacefully resolve Iran's nuclear issues through negotiations.

He urged all parties to remain calm and show restraint so as to create the necessary condition and atmosphere for resuming talks.

McCormack said Monday's talks were focused on "strategic level discussions," and were not intended as a discussion about the language on a resolution.

"This was intended more as a strategic level discussion about how to deal with various issues presented by Iran to the international community," he said.

The spokesman provided no details of the discussions among the foreign ministers.