US officials said there were no plans to evacuate the mission, and no US personnel were reported injured.
US President Donald Trump (Photo: IANS)
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that he does not foresee a war with Tehran after pro-Iranian demonstrators stormed the US embassy in Iraq.
On being asked about the possibility of war with the Islamic republic, President Trump at his holiday retreat in Florida said, “I don’t see that happening”.
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“I like peace,” the president said before heading into New Year’s celebrations.
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The president spoke after Defense Secretary Mark Esper said that around 750 troops from a rapid response unit of the 82nd Airborne Division are prepared to deploy over the next several days to the Middle East.
The US had already flown a rapid response team of Marines into Baghdad to reinforce its embassy after the attack Tuesday, which left smoke and flames rising from the compound’s entrance and further heightened tension between Tehran and Washington.
US officials said there were no plans to evacuate the mission, and no US personnel were reported injured.
The US reinforcements “got in there very quickly,” Trump further added.
“I think it’s been handled very well”, the president noted
Earlier in November, the United States had accused Iran of “nuclear extortion” and vowed no let-up in pressure after the clerical regime and said it would resume uranium enrichment at the key Fordow plant.
The US government had imposed sanctions on Iran’s construction sector and the transfer of four materials related to Tehran’s nuclear or military programmes.
In September, the US imposed its first-ever sanctions against Iran’s space agency, accusing it of disguising a missile program.
The US also warned the “international scientific community that collaborating with Iran on space launch vehicles could contribute to its ballistic missile program.”
In response to the US, Iran had said that its space program is aimed at building rockets to launch telecommunications satellites. Iran has fired two such satellites into orbit since 2013. But three other attempts this year have failed, including one rocket that blew up on the launchpad.
In May 2019, President Trump withdrew the US from the 2015 nuclear pact between Tehran and six world powers and has since reimposed and expanded punishing sanctions as part of a stated campaign of “maximum pressure” against Iran.
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