Iran condemns US sanctions move

Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has condemned the US for vowing to impose what it said would be the “strongest sanctions in history” on his country.

On Monday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo showed the US was a prisoner of its “failed policies” and it would suffer the consequences.

Drawing sharp contrasts with the 2015 deal, Pompeo said a stronger pact should require that Iran stop enrichment of uranium, which was allowed within strict limitations under the previous deal. Iran would also have to walk away from core pillars of its foreign policy, including its involvement in Syria, Yemen, Lebanon and Afghanistan.

The older US sanctions prohibited almost all trade with Iran.

 “This list may seem long to some, but it is simply a reflection of the massive scope of Iranian malign behavior,” Pompeo said. “America did not create this need for changed behavior. Iran did.”

Pompeo vowed that Trump’s approach would ensure “Iran has no possible path to a nuclear weapon, ever.” As he called for a better agreement to constrain Iran’s activities, he said the U.S. would “apply unprecedented financial pressure” to bring Tehran back to the table.

“These will end up being the strongest sanctions in history by the time we are complete,” Pompeo said at the conservative Heritage Foundation in his first major policy speech since taking over as top diplomat.

Pompeo did not say what new measures Washington was contemplating but described sanctions imposed last week on the head of Iran's central bank as "just the beginning".

Iran and EU foreign police chief Federica Mogherini criticised the US.

Mogherini said Pompeo had failed to show how dropping the 2015 nuclear deal would make the Middle East safer.  

There was, she said, "no alternative" to the agreement, which US President Donald Trump vowed earlier this month to abandon, and she said the EU would stick by it if Iran met its commitments.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani also launched a personal attack on Mike Pompeo, questioning his credibility as a former CIA chief to make decisions for Iran and the world.