US President Barack Obama defended his country’s efforts to contain Iran’s nuclear ambitions, saying that economic sanctions against Tehran have had “enormous bite,” and undertaking to consult with other nations on additional steps to ensure that Iran does not acquire an atomic weapon.
Obama expressed confidence that Russia and China in particular understand the threat a nuclear-armed Iran would pose, and said their leaders agree that Iran cannot be allowed to weaponize its -nuclear power and trigger a nuclear arms race in the region.
The president, at a news conference during the APEC summit, did not specifically say he would consider military action if Tehran were to persist in arming itself with a nuclear weapon.
For the president, the news conference was his first opportunity to address a report on Friday from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that provided new evidence that Iran’s nuclear program includes clandestine efforts to build a bomb.
The report, circulated among the UN watchdog agency’s member countries, alleges that Iran has been working to acquire equipment and weapons design information, testing high explosives and detonators, and developing computer models of a warhead’s core. Taken together, it’s the most unequivocal evidence yet that the Iranian program ranges far beyond enriching uranium for use in energy and medical research, which is what Tehran says it’s for.
In meetings on Saturday with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Chinese President Hu -Jintao (胡錦濤), Obama sought to rally support for putting new pressure on Iran’s regime.
However, there was little public sign either country was ready to drop its opposition to additional sanctions. The US has already slapped sanctions on dozens of Iranian government agencies, financial and shipping companies as well as officials over the nuclear program and could target additional institutions like Iran’s central bank. The UN has imposed four rounds of sanctions that have caused economic hardship in Iran, but have yet to force any change in the nuclear program.
Obama declined to directly respond to criticism of his Iran policy from Republican presidential candidates on Saturday, including former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney’s declaration that Obama’s re-election would mean a nuclear armed Iran, but he took a swipe at his foes anyway.
“Now, is this an easy issue?” he asked. “No, anyone who claims it is, is either politicking or doesn’t know what they’re talking about.”
He also rejected assertions from Republican candidates such as Herman Cain and US Representative Michele Bachmann that they would be willing to use the interrogation practice known as waterboarding, a simulated form of drowning, on suspected terrorists.
“Let me just say this: They’re wrong,” Obama said emphatically. “Waterboarding is torture, it’s contrary to America’s traditions, it’s contrary to our ideals, that’s not who we are, that’s not how we operate. We don’t need it ... and we did the right thing by ending that practice.”
On the status of deficit talks in Congress, Obama urged lawmakers to reach consensus.
A committee in charge of cutting the deficit has until Nov. 23 to agree on how to reduce it by at least US$1.2 trillion in the next decade. Any amount less than that would be made up in automatic across-the-board cuts divided evenly between defense and domestic programs.
Additional reporting by AFP
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