White House Warns Iran of ‘Additional Measures’ if Diplomacy Fails
Iran
Asharq Al-Awsat
The White House on Thursday warned that it will take “additional measures” to block Iran’s ability to earn revenue if diplomacy over the country’s nuclear program fails. “Given the ongoing advances in Iran’s nuclear program, the president has asked his team to be prepared in the event that diplomacy fails and we must turn to other options,” said White House spokesperson Jen Psaki. “If diplomacy cannot get on track soon and if Iran’s nuclear program continues to accelerate, then we will have no choice but to take additional measures to further restrict Iran’s revenue-producing sectors.” Earlier, US State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters on Thursday that it will take a few days to judge whether Iran is showing flexibility in talks about Tehran and Washington resuming compliance with the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal. “It will probably (be) another couple of days until we have sense of where the Iranians are in the context of the restart of this round and ... the flexibility that they may or may not be willing to show,” Price said. Asked if Iran might be playing for time in the talks and seeking to exploit US weakness, he said: “I can assure you that if the Iranian regime suspects the United States of weakness, they will be sorely surprised." “We have been very clear that Iran will not be able to play for time, that Iran’s nuclear escalations and its provocations won’t give Iran any additional leverage in these negotiations,” he said. Talks in Vienna are between Iran and the five powers still in the deal - Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia - following then-President Donald Trump’s 2018 decision to withdraw the United States. Under the accord, Iran curbed its nuclear program in return for relief from economic sanctions.
from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/3351746/white-house-warns-iran-%E2%80%98additional-measures%E2%80%99-if-diplomacy-fails
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