Iran is failing as a nation after sanctions: Trump

Iran is failing as a nation following the sanctions imposed by the United States, President Donald Trump has said, adding that Washington could turn the situation around. "They are failing as a nation, but I don't want them to fail as a nation. We can turn that around very quickly but the sanctions have been extraordinary [in] how powerful they have been," he told reporters before holding talks with French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday, reported Al Jazeera.

Last week, US Secretary of State Michael R Pompeo had said that Washington is willing to negotiate with Iran "with no preconditions". During the meeting on Thursday, Trump and Macron asserted that they do not want Iran to acquire nuclear weapons.

Macron also said both Washington and Paris want to reduce Tehran ballistic missile programme and "contain" Tehran's activity in the Middle East and achieve peace in the region. "I think we do share the same objectives on Iran. We had an accord until 2025 and we want to go further and have full certainty in the long run," Macron said.

"To build that we need to start a negotiation. We need to open a new negotiation," he added. Earlier, France, Germany and the UK had said that they remain fully committed to the preservation and full implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). They also urged Iran to continue implementing its commitments under the JCPOA after Tehran announced partial withdrawal from the deal.