Moscow slams new US sanctions on Iran

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Moscow denounces further tightening of U.S. sanctions on Iran, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.

"We consider these sanctions illegal. That's all that can be said," Peskov told reporters in Moscow.

On Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump promised considerably tightened restrictive measures against Islamic Republic of Iran.

Tensions have been high between the U.S. and Iran since last year, when Washington unilaterally withdrew from a landmark 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany and the EU.

The U.S. has since embarked upon a diplomatic and economic campaign to ramp up pressure on Iran to force it to renegotiate the agreement.

Part of its campaign has included the re-imposition of U.S. sanctions on exports of Iranian crude oil, which has sent the Iranian economy into a nosedive.

The U.S. has also increased its military presence in the region, deploying a carrier strike force, bomber task force and Patriot missile battery, pointing to threats from Iran as justification for the actions.

The confrontation approached a dangerous point when U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday he called off a retaliatory strike on Iranian targets that would have killed 150 people, calling it a disproportionate response to the downing of an American drone earlier last week.