The United States reinstated on Tuesday many economic sanctions against Iran as a result of leaving the 2015 nuclear accord, with President Donald Trump calling for a more comprehensive deal to bring an end to Iran's nuclear program.
The first round of reimposed sanctions, signed by Trump on Monday, covers Tehran's transactions in the auto sector, trade in coal, aluminum and precious metals and cash dealings involving U.S. dollars. Businesses of third-party countries, including Japan, would also be penalized for not complying with the sanctions.
"The United States is fully committed to enforcing all of our sanctions, and we will work closely with nations conducting business with Iran to ensure complete compliance. Individuals or entities that fail to wind down activities with Iran risk severe consequences," Trump said in a statement issued Monday.
The Trump administration is set to reimpose another round of sanctions in November, targeting the oil sector, a chief support of Iran's economy. Sanctions on Iranian oil imports are feared to damage Japan as the country depends on Iran for some 5 percent of its oil imports.
The restoration of the sanctions comes after Trump's announcement in May of U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear accord, under which Iran agreed to curb its nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.
The accord was signed by Tehran and six major powers -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States under Trump's Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama.
In the statement, Trump called the accord "a horrible, one-sided deal" that "failed to achieve the fundamental objective of blocking all paths to an Iranian nuclear bomb."
But he also said that, while the United States will "continue applying maximum economic pressure" on the Iranian government, he will "remain open to reaching a more comprehensive deal that addresses the full range of the regime's malign activities, including its ballistic missile program and its support for terrorism."
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani reacted sharply against the U.S. moves, saying that Washington should stop threatening Tehran and that calls for dialogue should come after the removal of sanctions.
According to the U.S. government, nearly 100 companies in the financial, energy and other sectors have expressed intentions to leave the Iranian market in line with the U.S. sanctions.
