US vows to punish Iran with ‘the strongest sanctions in history’ and says rogue regime won’t be allowed nukes ‘not now, not ever’
THE US has threatened to impose the "strongest sanctions in history" against Iran if the country's leadership does not change its foreign and domestic policy.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo today spelled out a hardline approach towards the Islamic Republic that included working closely with the Pentagon and regional allies to contain Iran.
He laid out 12 demands for Iran and said relief from economic sanctions would only come when Washington had seen tangible shifts in Iran's policies.
He warned: "The sting of sanctions will be painful if the regime does not change its course from the unacceptable and unproductive path it has chosen to one that rejoins the league of nations."
His demands come just weeks after the US pulled out of an international nuclear deal with Iran and threatened to hold those doing prohibited business in Iran to account.
Drawing sharp contrasts with the 2015 deal, Secretary of State Mike 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.
He said: "This list may seem long to some, but it is simply a reflection of the massive scope of Iranian malign behaviour. America did not create this need for changed behaviour. Iran did."
He vowed this would ensure "Iran has no possible path to a nuclear weapon, ever" and warned of "unprecedented financial pressure" to bring Tehran back to the table.
Pompeo added: "These will end up being the strongest sanctions in history by the time we are complete.
"It is America's hope that our labours toward peace and security will bear fruit for the long-suffering people of Iran."
The US withdrawal from the Iran deal marked a dramatic move for the Trump administration and put it at odds with almost all its allies.
Only a handful of countries, including Israel, supported its decision to pull out, while many critics said it was the only way to prevent Iran developing nuclear weapons.
His threat of further sanctions came as European parties to the landmark nuclear deal - France, Britain and Germany - were working to find a way to keep the pact in effect with Iran after Washington's exit.
Pompeo said Washington would be open to a new treaty and wanted the support of America's allies.
Earlier this month, Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear agreement which he called a "horrible, one-sided deal", saying it did not address Iran's ballistic missile activities and check in its regional behaviour.
It was the start of a tumultuous few weeks for the administration which days later moved its Israel embassy to contested Jerusalem, sparking protests in Gaza and the West Bank in which 114 Palestinians were killed.
POMPEO'S 12 DEMANDS
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo today described 12 steps Iran must take before the US would welcome it back to the international community. They are:
1. Iran must declare to the IAEA a full account of the "prior military dimensions of its nuclear programme".
2. Iran must stop all uranium enrichment, never pursue plutonium reprocessing and close its heavy water reactor.
3. Iran must provide the IAEA unqualified access to all sites throughout the country.
4. Iran must stop its proliferation of ballistic missiles and halt all nuclear-capable missile tests.
5. Iran must release all citiziens of the US and its partners and allies detained on spurious charges.
6. Iran must end all support of terror groups such as Hezbollah and Hamas.
7. Iran must respect the sovereignty of the Iraqi government and allow the demobilisation of Shia militias.
8. Iran must end its support for Houthi militia operating in Yemen.
9. Iran must withdraw all Iranian forces operating in Syria.
10. Iran must end its support for the Taliban and cease harbouring Al-Qaeda.
11. Iran must end its Revolutionary Guards' support for terrorists.
12. Iran must cease its "threatening behaviour" towards its neighbours, including Israel.
Today Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson poured scepticism on Washington’s hardline approach, saying it would be "very, very difficult" to achieve in "anything like a reasonable timetable".
The Foreign Secretary’s rebuke elevates what is already the worst trans-Atlantic row with the White House since Trump’s election.
Mr Johnson said: "If you try now to fold all those issues – the ballistic missiles, Iran’s misbehaviour, Iran’s disruptive activity in the region and the nuclear question - if you try to fold all those in to a giant negotiation, a new jumbo Iran negotiation, a new treaty.
"I don’t see that being very easy to achieve, in anything like a reasonable timetable."
Britain has joined European states including Germany and France in reaffirming their commitment to the original Iran deal, known as the JCPOA.
"The advantage of the JCPOA was that it had a very clear objective. It protected the world from an Iranian nuclear bomb, and in return it gave the Iranians some recognisable economic benefits. That was at the core of it.
"The Americans have walked away from that."
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