US stands firm against Iran, it will strike if attacked: Brian Hook

US Special Envoy for Iran Brian Hook said Washington has made clear it will respond with military force if US interests are attacked by Iran. (File/AFP)
  • Confirmed US was awaiting the results of the investigations into the recent attacks on UAE
  • Hook said President Trump was open to negotiations with Iran

DUBAI: Iran needs to show more interest in talks than threats, a senior advisor to the US Secretary of State has said, adding that the US will respond with 鈥渕ilitary might鈥� if its interests were attacked.

Brian Hook, the US Special Representative for Iran and Senior Policy Advisor to the Secretary of State, said a number of 鈥渕ilitary assets鈥� had already been repositioned in response to intelligence that Iran was planning imminent attacks against American interests.

鈥淲e have made it clear that we will respond with military force if American interests are attacked by Iran,鈥� Hook said at a press briefing on Thursday.

He said the US was awaiting the results of the investigations into the recent attacks on UAE, Saudi and Norwegian tankers in the region and said a 鈥減roper response鈥� would then be discussed.

鈥淲e have been consistent in our messaging 鈥� Iran should show more of an interest in talks than threats and we have seen on an almost daily basis from the Iranian regime that they will not talk with the United States.鈥�

鈥淚ran faces a choice 鈥� they have to decide whether they want to be a normal country or a revolutionary cause,鈥� he warned.

Hook said President Trump was open to negotiations, but he added that the US 鈥渕aximum pressure campaign鈥� was working 鈥渂y nearly every measure.鈥�

鈥淭he Iranian regime and its proxies are weaker today than when the (US) president took office over two years ago,鈥� he explained.

Already, he said, Hezbollah鈥檚 leader Hassan Nasrallah had made a public call for support 鈥� 鈥減iggy banks have been placed in grocery stores in Lebanon to help raise funds,鈥� while Hamas has enacted austerity plans to deal with a lack of funds from Iran.

He said Iran鈥檚 Shiite militia groups would have to 鈥渇ind new sources of revenue.鈥�

And he said that the Assad regime today faced a fuel shortage crisis because the US had cut off the 1鈥�3 million barrels per month that Iran had previously supplied.

Even Iran鈥檚 military spending has been cut, he said, adding that it peaked during the nuclear deal.

鈥淪ince we exited the deal, Iran鈥檚 military spending for the budget that they released in March was cut by 28 percent.鈥�

He said Iran was in recession and once the US oil sanctions take full effect, with a policy of zero imports for Iranian crude oil 鈥� the sanctions will deny the Iranian regime $50 billion in revenue -  that鈥檚 40 percent of Iran鈥檚 annual budget.

Trump also said on Thursday that Iran鈥檚 economy is suffering from US sanctions and that the country is becoming a 鈥渨eakened nation.鈥�