US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Tuesday (September 10th) said President Donald Trump is ready to meet his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani without preconditions while maintaining "maximum pressure" on Tehran, AFP reported.
"Now the president has made clear, he is happy to take a meeting with no preconditions, but we are maintaining the maximum pressure campaign," Mnuchin said.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, standing alongside Mnuchin in the White House briefing room, said "sure" when asked whether Trump could meet Rouhani later this month on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
The administration meanwhile announced new terrorist designations against leaders of several organisations with close ties to Tehran.
The sanctions apply to commanders or senior leaders of groups including the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Hizbullah, among others.
"You know we have done more sanctions on Iran than anybody, and it is absolutely working," Mnuchin said. "I would say Secretary Pompeo and myself and the president are completely aligned on our maximum pressure campaign."
Pompeo said the designations add "further muscle to US counter-terrorism efforts".
