Trump Announces ‘Considerable’ Escalation of Iran Sanctions
The US President announced that he has approved new sanctions against the Islamic Republic that intensify previous sanctions. Donald Trump had also said the previous day that America’s arms are open for negotiations and peace.
Donald Trump announced on Thursday, December 19 (January 9), in a gathering with journalists at the White House that a decision had been made on new economic sanctions against the Islamic Republic, which he approved shortly before.
According to France’s news agency, the US President said that the sanctions imposed against the Islamic Republic have been very severe so far, but are now “considerably” intensified.
He refrained from providing explanations about how these sanctions work and noted that details of recent decisions would be announced soon. The US Treasury Department is expected to issue a statement in this regard.
Trump had said on Wednesday, in response to the firing of several missiles by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Air Force at two American bases in Iraq, that new sanctions against Iran are on the way.
The IRGC’s missile attack, which according to Trump and Iraqi officials caused no casualties, was in retaliation for a drone strike days earlier by American forces on two vehicles carrying Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of the IRGC, and his companions near Baghdad Airport.
In the American drone operation on the morning of December 13, Soleimani, four other IRGC members, and five senior members of the Shiite Hashd al-Shaabi militia, including Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy commander of the group, were killed.
Following this incident, the leader of the Islamic Republic, Ali Khamenei, and many senior Iranian political and military officials threatened that “severe retaliation” awaits America. Most of these figures have openly or implicitly stated that the IRGC’s missile launches toward Iraq constituted this retaliation, and subsequent operations would occur if America takes action.
Maximum Pressure for Comprehensive Agreement
Donald Trump withdrew from the nuclear agreement last May, after which previously lifted or suspended sanctions were reimposed against the Islamic Republic. He attributes the motivation for these sanctions, which have been escalated in recent months, to imposing “maximum pressure” to bring Iran to the negotiating table to achieve a comprehensive agreement.
The US President believes the nuclear agreement does not permanently prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, does not limit its missile programs, and does not prevent “destabilizing” actions in the region or support for groups that America calls terrorist.
On Wednesday, Trump stressed that as long as he is in the White House, Iran will not be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons. He called on the five remaining countries in the nuclear agreement (Britain, France, Germany, China, and Russia) to withdraw from the agreement and cooperate with Washington for a comprehensive agreement.
Donald Trump, while threatening the Islamic Republic, announced readiness to cooperate with Tehran in some areas the previous day and added that the United States is ready to embrace peace.
Majid Takht-Ravanchi, Iran’s representative to the United Nations, in a conversation with Iran’s state news agency, called Trump’s remarks insincere and said his claims about cooperation and negotiations are not credible.
Source: DW
