WASHINGTON – US on Monday threatened to impose the “strongest sanctions inhistory” against Iran if it did not accept a sweeping series of U.S.demands, including effectively giving up its nuclear ambitions, curtailingits ballistic missile program and ending its expansionist behaviour.

Weeks after the United States pulled out of an international nuclear dealwith Iran, Pompeo spelled out a hardline approach towards the IslamicRepublic, potentially setting Washington and Tehran on a deeperconfrontation course.

“The sting of sanctions will only grow more painful if the regime does notchange course from the unacceptable and unproductive path it has chosen foritself and the people of Iran,” Pompeo said in his first major foreignpolicy speech since becoming secretary of state. “These will be thestrongest sanctions in history by the time we are done,” he added.

Pompeo took aim at Iran’s policy of expanding its influence in the MiddleEast through support for proxy armed groups in countries such as Syria andYemen. He warned that the United States would “crush” Iranian operativesand allies abroad and told Tehran to withdraw all forces under its commandfrom the Syrian civil war where they back President Bashar al-Assad.

Iran is unlikely to accede to the U.S. demands. Tension between the twocountries has grown notably since U.S. President Trump this month withdrewfrom the 2015 nuclear agreement aimed at preventing Tehran from obtaining anuclear weapon.

Pompeo warned that if Iran fully resumed its nuclear program Washingtonwould be ready to respond and said the administration would hold companiesdoing prohibited business in Iran to account. “Our demands on Iran are notunreasonable: give up your program,” Pompeo said, “Should they choose to goback, should they begin to enrich, we are fully prepared to respond to thatas well,” he said, declining to elaborate.