US threatens sanction against Iran

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Source: CCTV.com | 04-24-2009 13:49

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is defending President Barack Obama's efforts to engage diplomatically with Iran. Meanwhile, Iran's foreign minister is reacting to the US latest warnings over its nuclear program.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki, center,  attends a Somalia donors conference at EU headquarters  in Brussels, Thursday April 23, 2009.  (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has threatened sanctions against Iran if it does not halt its nuclear activities.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, "The sanctions are a tool for us to leverage pressure on the Iranian regime to change behaviors that we obviously consider serious threats. And so we are talking with our partners about additional sanctions as part of an incentives-disincentives kind of approach to Iran. It's a delicate balancing act."

Clinton made the remarks after Iran issued an official statement saying it will press ahead with its work to develop atomic energy.

On Thursday, Iran's foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki responded to the United State's latest threat over its nuclear ambitions.

Mottaki insists the US should study the peaceful activities of the Iranian nuclear program.