Trump warns Iran about 'threats' after its uranium enrichment announcement

Threats can come back to bite Iran, says US president

President Donald Trump warned Iran on Wednesday to “be careful with threats” after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the country would boost its uranium enrichment beyond the cap set in a 2015 nuclear deal.

“Iran has just issued a New Warning. Rouhani says that they will Enrich Uranium to ‘any amount we want’ if there is no new Nuclear Deal,” Trump said on Twitter.

Iran has just issued a New Warning. Rouhani says that they will Enrich Uranium to “any amount we want” if there is no new Nuclear Deal. Be careful with the threats, Iran. They can come back to bite you like nobody has been bitten before!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 3, 2019

“Be careful with the threats, Iran. They can come back to bite you like nobody has been bitten before!” he said.

Tensions between Washington and Tehran have escalated since Trump pulled Washington out of the pact in May 2018 and acted to bar all international sales of Iranian oil, the Islamic Republic’s economic lifeblood.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif denies that Iran is in violation of the nuclear accord by exceeding the cap on low-enriched uranium, saying Iran is exercising its right to respond after the US withdrawal.

The nuclear accord lifted most global sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on its uranium enrichment capacity.

It aimed to extend the time Tehran would need to produce a nuclear bomb, if it chose to, from roughly 2-3 months to a year.

Iran’s main demand - in talks with the European parties to the deal and as a precondition to any talks with the United States - is to be allowed to sell its oil at the levels that prevailed before Trump left the deal and restored sanctions.