…As UN chief pledges ‘active engagement’ in de-escalating U.S.-Iran tension***
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the U.S. did not necessarily have to use its military power against Iran.
Trump was speaking in an address from the White House, in an apparent attempt to defuse a crisis over the American killing of Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani.
He said that no Americans were harmed in the Iranian missile attacks on military bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq.
He added that Washington might not carry out immediate retaliation.
“The fact that we have this great military and equipment, however, does not mean we have to use it.
“We do not want to use it. American strength – both military and economic – is the best deterrent.
“Our great American forces are prepared for anything.
“Iran appears to be standing down, which is a good thing for all parties concerned and a very good thing for the world,” he said.
Trump stopped short of making any direct threat of military action against Iran but said that the U.S. “will immediately impose additional punishing economic sanctions on the Iranian regime” in response to what he called “Iranian aggression”.
He offered no specific measures.
Iranian forces fired missiles at military bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq on Wednesday in retaliation for the killing of Iranian Gen. Soleimani, raising the stakes in its conflict with Washington amid concern about a wider war in the Middle East.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, addressing a gathering of Iranians chanting “Death to America”, said the attacks were a “slap on the face” of the U.S. and said U.S. troops should leave the region.
Iran’s foreign minister said Tehran took “proportionate measures” in self-defense and did not seek to escalate the confrontation.
Trump again vowed that he would not allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon and urged world powers including Russia and China to abandon the 2015 nuclear accord with Iran and work toward a new agreement.
“We must all work together toward making a deal with Iran that makes the world a safer and more peaceful place,” he said.
In a related development, the UN chief Antonio Guterres said he would “continue his active engagement with relevant actors,” in an effort to de-escalate U.S.-Iran tensions following Iranian missile strikes on Iraqi bases hosting U.S. forces.
“It is our common duty to make every effort to avoid a war in the Gulf that the world cannot afford,” Guterres said in a statement.
The UN secretary general also reiterates his “passionate appeal for peace” made on Monday, when he urged both sides to “stop escalation.”
Also read: All is well, says Trump after Iran’s rocket attacks on U.S. troops
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday expressed deep concern over the evolving situation in the Middle East in view of the U.S.-Iran tensions, underlining the imperative of avoiding any further escalation, official said.
This is contained in a statement issued by the Prime Minister Office.
The prime minister made the remarks while talking to Minister for Endowment and Religious Affairs of Oman Sheikh Abdullah Assalami in Islamabad.
He said this after the tensions between the U.S. and Iran heightened over a U.S. drone strike that killed Iranian general Qassem Soleimani on Friday near Baghdad airport.
The prime minister’s office said that during the meeting with the Omani minister the two discussed the recent developments in the Middle East and the Gulf region, with Khan saying that war is in nobody’s interest.
“Recalling that Pakistan had suffered greatly due to earlier regional conflicts, the prime minister made clear that Pakistan would not be part of any conflict in the region,” the statement added.
Khan also recalled his earlier efforts for the facilitation of contacts between the U.S. and Iran as well as Iran and Saudi Arabia for peaceful resolution of differences and disputes.
“Pakistan would always be a partner for peace. Pakistan would continue to play its role in seeking to defuse tensions, prevent conflict, and preserve the peace,” the statement quoted the prime minister as saying.
-Reuters with additional reports from dpa
