Has the door closed on diplomacy between Iran and US?
Iranian president calls new US sanctions against Tehran ‘idiotic and dangerous’.
Iran‘s president Hassan Rouhani reacted to the latest round of United States sanctions against his country by saying the White House had “lost its mind”.
The new measures target Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his military chiefs, denying them access to financial resources.
The US says the sanctions are a response to Iran’s recent “aggressive behaviour”, but Iranian leaders say Washington has closed the door on diplomacy.
What can break the cycle of escalating rhetoric between the two sides?
Presenter: Adrian Finighan
Guests:
Mostafa Khoschcheshm – Journalist and political commentator
Mahdi Ghodsi – Economist at the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies
Ali Vaez – Director of Iran project at the International Crisis Group