U.S. 'not in position to obliterate Iran': Iran's FM
- 5 years ago
The United States has reiterated it does not want war with Iran.
For more on this and other news from around the world, let's turn to our Hong Yoo.
Yoo, tell us what the acting U.S. defense chief has been teling Washington's allies about the Trump administration's stance.
During a news conference at the NATO Defense Ministerial in Brussels on Thursday, Acting U.S. Defence Secretary Mark Esper who stepped into the role of acting Pentagon chief on Monday reiterated that the U.S. is not seeking war with Iran.
Esper said the U.S. wants talks to negotiate a new nuclear deal.
"Our goal is to bring Iran to the negotiating table to conclude a comprehensive, enduring deal that addresses Iran's nuclear programme, its ballistic missile development and proliferation, its support for terrorism and other maligned activities. Our strategy is at its core an economic and diplomatic one. Again, we do not seek armed conflict with Iran, but we are ready to defend U.S. forces and interests in the region. No one should mistake restraint for weakness."
Prior to those comments, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif confronted President Trump's recent threat against Tehran.
Trump said Tuesday that any subsequent attack Iran might carry out on "anything American" could be met with Iran's obliteration.
But Zarif said the U.S. "is not in a position to obliterate Iran".
Both countries are on the same page of not seeking war, but Zarif said U.S. actions have been "confrontational" and "provocative".
And in his latest tweet, Zarif wrote that U.S sanctions "aren't alternative to war; they are war".
Washington and Tehran's relations took a dangerous turn after the Trump administration pulled out of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and started imposing crushing sanctions on Iran.
The tensions peaked last week when the U.S. deployed 1-thousand additional troops to the Middle East in response to Iran's recent downing of a U.S. drone.
For more on this and other news from around the world, let's turn to our Hong Yoo.
Yoo, tell us what the acting U.S. defense chief has been teling Washington's allies about the Trump administration's stance.
During a news conference at the NATO Defense Ministerial in Brussels on Thursday, Acting U.S. Defence Secretary Mark Esper who stepped into the role of acting Pentagon chief on Monday reiterated that the U.S. is not seeking war with Iran.
Esper said the U.S. wants talks to negotiate a new nuclear deal.
"Our goal is to bring Iran to the negotiating table to conclude a comprehensive, enduring deal that addresses Iran's nuclear programme, its ballistic missile development and proliferation, its support for terrorism and other maligned activities. Our strategy is at its core an economic and diplomatic one. Again, we do not seek armed conflict with Iran, but we are ready to defend U.S. forces and interests in the region. No one should mistake restraint for weakness."
Prior to those comments, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif confronted President Trump's recent threat against Tehran.
Trump said Tuesday that any subsequent attack Iran might carry out on "anything American" could be met with Iran's obliteration.
But Zarif said the U.S. "is not in a position to obliterate Iran".
Both countries are on the same page of not seeking war, but Zarif said U.S. actions have been "confrontational" and "provocative".
And in his latest tweet, Zarif wrote that U.S sanctions "aren't alternative to war; they are war".
Washington and Tehran's relations took a dangerous turn after the Trump administration pulled out of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and started imposing crushing sanctions on Iran.
The tensions peaked last week when the U.S. deployed 1-thousand additional troops to the Middle East in response to Iran's recent downing of a U.S. drone.