Clinton Threatens `Crippling' Sanctions on Iran If Nuclear Talks Rebuffed

[Purveyor]

Source: Bloomberg

By Viola Gienger

April 22 (Bloomberg) -- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the U.S. effort to reach out to Iran will be coupled with the threat of “crippling” sanctions should the regime in Tehran rebuff diplomacy to curb its nuclear program.

Clinton, in testimony to a House committee today, described a two-track strategy to reach out to Iran while gathering support from allies for sanctions. The U.S. and European allies including Britain and France seek to persuade Iran to stop a suspected effort to develop the means to build a nuclear weapon and to throw open its program to wider scrutiny by inspectors.

The threat of sanctions will strengthen the U.S. position with other partners in the effort, Clinton said. China and Russia, which both hold vetoes on the United Nations Security Council, have resisted tougher penalties against Iran.

“It is our expectation that we will be able to put together such a comprehensive sanctions regime in the event that we need it,” Clinton told the House Foreign Affairs Committee in Washington. “It is our commitment that we will pursue that if we are either unsuccessful or stonewalled in our other approach.”

Representative Howard Berman, the committee’s chairman, said sanctions should be tough enough to alter Iran’s policies.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aBH...

[ananda]

1. I'm not sure that we have the ability to impose..

.. crippling sanctions on Iran.

AFAIK, Iran is doing business with
other nations and doing fine without us.

[dipsydoodle]

2. Iran is doing business.......

Exactly. I'd have some difficulty in believing that Iran is exactly scared shitless by Hils missives.

[Tempest]

3. They didn't blink for Bush

They're not going to blink for Clinton.

[ConcernedCanuk]

4. Talking "tough" to Iran ain't gonna work, - they remember USA's interference decades ago

.
.
.

Iran had a democratic government before the USA interfered decades ago

Iran remembers the USA supplying weapons to Iraq under Saddam to wage war on Iran

Iran never waged war on the USA, nor did it encourage another country to do so.

USA owes Iran an apology, and reparations.

Iran owes the USA nothing.

USA should get off of its superpower high-horse attitude and just start to take care of its own citizens at home.

Maybe Iran IS trying to get nuclear weapons - it would take them over half a century, possibly much longer, to equal what the USA already has in nuclear capability.

should I get excited if my neighbor(which Iran is NOT, it's half way around the globe) decides to buy himself a machine gun when I have THOUSANDS at home already?

jeezuzchristus - will the USA's insanity and paranoia ever cease? ? ?

I fear not until the USA manages to incite a global nuclear war . .

The BFEE and PNAC gangs wet dreams . . .

(sigh)

[twitomy]

5. It only takes one nuke

to further destabilize the area. and severly damage if not destroy Isreal. You think Saudi Arabia is NOT going to build a nuke if Iran gets one? But your right, USA should leave Iran alone. Isreal will take care of it.

[Mnemosyne]

6. You do know that Israel has a nuclear arsenal, don't you?

Mordechai Vanunu - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mordechai_Vanunu

Much of Pakistan's nuclear weapons were bought with Saudi money.


Just an FYI.

[fbahrami]

9. well said

I am not a supported of the IRI, however having lived in Iran, I know that most Iranians lost trust in the U.S. in 1953 with the coup d'etat against Dr. Mosaddegh, the elected prime-minister.

[Mnemosyne]

7. Are we going to starve their children and deny medical care as we did to Iraq?

Guess Madeline will feel it's "worth it".

[marshall]

8. Yeah, that's worked so well in Cuba

But then she won't be around in 50 years to see the endgame.