Saudi Arabia says USA well aware of Iran ‘mischief’

“The United States remains concerned about some of the activities that Iran is engaged in in other countries”, Kerry said, pointing to continued US sanctions over Iran’s support for terrorist groups like Hezbollah, its human rights record and its development of ballistic missiles.

“I wouldn’t call it an exchange of prisoners, because every person released in the United States, as I understand, chose to remain in the United States, which tells you what a great country Iran is, that none of them wanted to look forward to going back to it”. And that is part of what I’m going to Saudi Arabia about: “to make sure our friends see clearly how we will go forward on, together, to address those kinds of concerns”. Under the nuclear deal implemented last weekend, Iran has access to as much as $55 billion of its estimated $100 billion in unfrozen assets.

Thursday’s concession, however slight, sent the GOP into a rage, and party representatives wasted no time linking it to the 2016 election. “We were on the cusp of confrontation, believe me”, Kerry said.

The former secretary of State’s defense of the nuclear accord “is another reminder of the failed foreign policy she would continue if elected”, he added.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said, in the absence of tougher action from the administration – responsible for “the biggest miscalculation since Munich” – “Congress will step up to the plate, and hopefully our Democratic friends will join us”.

“Israel was facing a country that is in position to Israel and Israel’s existence that was moving towards a nuclear weapon and moving at a rate that was disturbing”, Kerry said.

“We hold the Assad regime and its Russian ally responsible for any failure of the political process due to their continued war crimes”, a joint statement from dozens of rebel factions cited by Reuters said.

Kerry met Saturday with foreign ministers from the Gulf Cooperation Council who have taken a hard line against Iran in its spat with Saudi Arabia and its support for Syrian President Bashar Assad. “We all pay for it. So we have to wage this fight collectively – not reluctantly, but wholeheartedly by embracing standards that make corruption the exception, not the norm”.

“(Defence Secretary Ashton Carter) was just in Paris meeting with coalition members, they are all committed”, Kerry said.

“We think they have been used judiciously and effectively and we are looking to move on now to put to test the willingness of Iran and other countries in the region to try to reduce tensions and move in a different direction”.