Change or faCe isolation, iran told

WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday reimposing many sanctions on Iran, three months after pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal, saying the US policy is to levy “maximum economic pressure” on the country.

In a statement, Trump said the 2015 international accord to freeze Iran’s nuclear programme in return for lifting sanctions was a “horrible, one-sided deal” and said it left the Iranian government flush with cash to use to fuel conflict in the Middle East.

“We urge all nations to take such steps to make clear that the Iranian regime faces a choice: either change its threatening, destabilising behaviour and reintegrate with the global economy, or continue down a path of economic isolation,” Trump said.

“I remain open to reaching a more comprehensive deal that addresses the full range of the regime’s malign activities, including its ballistic missile programme and its support for terrorism,” Trump said. Trump warned that those who don’t wind down their economic ties to Iranian “risk severe consequences” under the reimposed sanctions. —

Iran said the US was ‘isolated’ in its hostility to the Islamic republic on Monday, as it braced for the return of sanctions against a backdrop of political turmoil inside the country. “Of course, American bullying and political pressures may cause some disruption, but the fact is that in the current world, America is isolated,” Foreign Minister Javad Zarif told reporters.