UPDATE 2-US to host Iran-focused global summit in Poland Feb. 13-14
The State Department said there were strong shared interests in Middle East stability.
"The ministerial will address a range of critical issues including terrorism and extremism, missile development and proliferation, maritime trade and security, and threats posed by proxy groups across the region," it said.
U.S. President Donald Trump's top diplomat is visiting a number of Middle Eastern countries this week in an effort to shore up support in the region amid a number of ongoing fronts, from the U.S. troop withdrawal from Syria to the Saudi-Qatar rift to the killing of U.S.-based Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Pompeo, in the midst of his eight-day trip through the region, has said that the United States is "redoubling" its efforts to put pressure on Iran and sought to convince allies in the region that it was committed to fighting the Islamic State despite Trump's recent decision to pull U.S. troops out of Syria.
Pompeo told Fox News the summit would include representatives from countries around the world to address Iran's regional influence as the Trump administration has sought to pressure Tehran.
Trump withdrew the United States from the 2015 Iran nuclear accord and moved to reimpose sanctions on Tehran, even as other partners in the deal, including China, France, Germany, Russia and the United Kingdom, have sought to maintain the deal.
In a shift earlier this week, the European Union moved to impose some sanctions on Iran.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey and David Brunnstrom in Washington and Lesley Wroughton in Cairo; Editing by Alison Williams, Jeffrey Benkoe and Susan Thomas)
ALSO READ
-
Poverty in the Line of Fire: UN Experts Demand Iran End Border Courier Killings
-
Iran’s Civilians Trapped Between State Repression and Deadly Strikes, UN Warns
-
Lee Jae Myung's Diplomatic Milestones: Balancing Amidst Global Tensions
-
Hackers Compromise US-Bound Vessels: Security Breach in the Gulf of Mexico
-
Tanker Trouble: Togo Vessel's Fiery Halt in Hormuz
Google News