U.S. Policy
On November 20, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned a wide network that was helping Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Qods Force “counterfeit currency to support its destabilizing activities.” The U.S. government has accused the Qods Force of meddling in the affairs of Iran’s neighbors…
On November 1, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that the United States is Iran’s top enemy and that “resistance” is the only way to counter it. Citing President Donald Trump’s recent characterization of the Islamic Republic as a “terrorist nation like few others,” Khamenei argued that…
President Donald Trump reportedly asked French President Emmanuel Macron to broker a conversation with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, according to several administration and foreign officials who spoke with The Washington Post. The three leaders were all in New York City in September for the U.N…
U.S. officials have defended President Trump’s new Iran policy since his October 13 speech, in which he decertified Iran’s compliance with the nuclear deal. The following are excerpted remarks.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson
QUESTION: You said recently that Iran is in technical compliance…
On October 3, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said that it was in the U.S. national interest to continue to honor the nuclear deal if Iran is meeting its obligations. “I believe at this point in time, absent indications to the contrary, it is something the President should consider staying with,” he…
On September 26, General Joseph F. Dunford, Jr. (United States Marine Corps), appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee to discuss his reappointment to the grade of general and reappointment to be Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. When asked about the nature of the threat posed by…
On September 24, President Donald Trump announced new travel restrictions on certain foreigners from Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela, and Yemen. The move replaced key parts of a controversial travel ban signed earlier in 2017.
Trump has argued that that security…
On September 5, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley criticized the nuclear deal and argued that U.N. inspectors cannot know if Iran is cheating. Iranian leaders have vowed to not allow inspections of military sites. The regime has "hundreds of undeclared sites that have suspicious…
On August 15, the U.S. State Department issued an updated travel warning for Iran to “highlight the risk of arrest and detention for U.S. citizens, particularly dual national Iranian-Americans.” The update comes after the Iranian Foreign Ministry announced it would take “reciprocal action” in…
On August 2, President Donald Trump signed a bipartisan bill imposing sanctions on Iran and Russia. It also increased the President’s ability to sanction individuals connected to North Korea. Congress had voted overwhelmingly to pass the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, which…