U.S. President Donald Trump speaks on new Iran strategy at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, on Oct. 13, 2017. U.S. President Donald Trump rolled out his new Iran strategy on Friday, vowing to deny Tehran "all paths to a nuclear weapon" in a major shift in Washington's Iran policy. (Xinhua/Ting Shen)
WASHINGTON, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump rolled out his new Iran strategy on Friday, vowing to deny Tehran "all paths to a nuclear weapon" in a major shift in Washington's Iran policy.
The strategy was "the culmination of nine months of deliberation with Congress and our allies," according to the White House.
The core elements of Trump's new strategy included the U.S. readiness to neutralize the Iranian influence, and deny the funding of the Iranian government and especially the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) for their "malign activities."
According to the strategy, Iran "exports violence, destabilizes its neighbors, and sponsors terrorism abroad." It was also accused of taking advantage "of regional conflicts and instability" to expand its regional influence.
Such moves have posed "one of the most dangerous threats to the interests of the United States," Trump noted.
Lashing out at his predecessor Barack Obama for his "myopic focus on Iran's nuclear program" that allowed "Iran's influence in the region to reach a high-water mark," Trump said his administration "will not repeat these mistakes."
He said Iran has "displayed a disturbing pattern of behavior," saying it has publicly refused to allow the international watchdog to inspect its military sites.
"Thes behavior cannot be tolerated," said Trump.
