By Janet Ekstract
NEW YORK- In his White House press briefing on Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken made it clear that the U.S. “overall approach” to Iran hasn’t changed. He said the White House is still committed to nuclear deterrence where Iran is concerned. Blinken commented: “We continue to pursue a strategy of deterrence, of pressure, and diplomacy.” He added that the Biden administration continues to make sure the Iranian regime is held accountable for human rights abuses along with “destabilizing actions in the region”, funding terrorism, sending drones to Russia to use against Ukraine and a host of “other offenses.”
Blinken said it was made clear to Iran that it “must de-escalate to create space for future diplomacy. Referring to the recent move by Iran to release U.S. detainees from prison to home detention has nothing to do with “any other aspect of our Iran policy.” He reiterated: “You’ve heard me say this before: I have no higher priority than looking out for the security and well-being of Americans around the world.” Blinken highlighted that the State Department continues “to do everything we can” to gain the release of those still begin held by Iran. He added that the U.S. welcomes any steps by Iran to “de-escalate the growing nuclear threat that it has posed since the United States got out of the Iran nuclear agreement.” He added that it’s “President Biden’s determination” to make sure Iran “never gets a nuclear weapon, remains rock solid. Blinken reminded the press: “There is no agreement between us on nuclear matters.” He also said that there is an “entirely separate” agreement to bring those who are “wrongfully detained” in Iran, back to the U.S. He stressed that his focus on this and that the goal is to succeed in those efforts.
What many people may not know, Blinken explained is that the U.S. is involved in multiple efforts on the Iranian front “to counter a whole variety of actions being taken by Iran that we profoundly object to, and so do many other countries around the world.” He said that’s evident in implementing a multitude of sanctions against Iran including recent steps the U.S. took “to shore up our military presence in the Gulf to account for the Iranians trying to interfere with shipping.” It’s also evident he said “where we are pushing back against Iran’s abuses of human rights, its destabilizing actions, its ballistic missiles, its funding of terrorism, the provision of drones to Russia for use in Ukraine.”
He concluded by confirming that last week Iranian authorities “released five U.S. citizens from prison to house arrest – Siamak Namazi, Morad Tahbaz, Ebad Shargi and two Americans who wish to remain private.” He said the majority of those released had been imprisoned prior to the Biden administration with one held for almost eight years. Blinken remarked: “None should have been detained in the first place.” He said that he had spoken with several family members of some of the detainees, praising “their resilience, their courage, that never ceases to inspire.” The secretary of state said: “My message to them is the same thing that you’ll hear from me today. Moving our people to house arrest is a positive step, but they are not yet home. We’re closely monitoring their well-being, we’re especially grateful to our Swiss partners for their on-the-ground support, and we will not rest until our fellow citizens are back in the United States, reunited with their families.”
