White House blames Iran for war of words after Trump's explosive Twitter threat

WASHINGTON-The White House on Monday blamed Iranian President Hbadan Rouhani for inciting a war of words with US President Donald Trump, who warned that verbal threats could escalate into US military conflict

Trump, who campaigned on a promise to bring a more hawkish approach to Iran, an all-caps tweet late Sunday warning to say consequences for the longtime foe. "NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKE OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE," he wrote.

Trump was responding to Rouhani, who had remarked earlier in the day that "America must understand "

Within hours, Iran's state-owned news agency IRNA dismissed the tweet, describing it as a" pbadive reaction "to Rouhani's remarks

On Monday, the White House said Trump's tweet shows he is not going to tolerate critical rhetoric from Iran and insists the US is not escalating tensions between the two countries.

"If anybody's inciting anything, look no more than to Iran, "press secretary Sarah Sanders said and added that Trump has been"

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders declines to her If Trump had been consulted with national security aides, but said "Trump's national security adviser," John Bolton, echoed Trump's rhetoric in a statement Monday saying he's speaking with Trump Trump told me that Iran does not have anything to do with it. "

In Tehran, a headline on a local newspaper quoted Rouhani saying, "Mr. Trump, do not play with the lion's tail. "

Prominent Iranian badyst Leilaz Seed down the war of words, saying he thought it was" the storm before the calm. "

Leilaz told The Associated Press he was not" "

Citing the United States and North Korea had exchanged before the high-profile summit between Trump and the United States of America. and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Leilaz said Trump and Kim got "closer" despite the warring words.

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The tweet was reverberating across the Mideast. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the US president's "strong stance" after years in which the Iranian "regime was pampered by world powers."

Trump this year pulled the US out of the international deal meant to prevent Tehran from developing a

With the economic pressure, Trump said earlier that "at some point they're going to call me and say 'let's make a deal,' and we'll make a deal. "

Iran has rejected talks with the US, and Rouhani has accused the US of stoking an" economic war. "

Rouhani also suggested Iran could immediately ramp up its production of uranium in response to US pressure. Potentially that would escalate the very situation the nuclear deal sought to avoid – an Iran with a stockpile of enriched uranium that could lead to making atomic bombs.

Trump's tweet suggests he has little patience with the trading of hostile messages with Iran, using

"WE ARE NO LONGER TO COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS !, "he wrote.

Trump has a history of firing off heated tweets that seem to quickly escalate long-standing disputes with leaders of nations at odds with the US

In the case of North Korea, the public war of words quickly and gradually to the high profile summit and denuclearization talks. There is nothing tangible progress in a global push to rid North Korea of ​​its nuclear weapons program since the historic Trump-Kim summit on June 12.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo flew to Pyongyang for followup talks this month, but the two sides showed conflicting accounts of the talks. North's Foreign Ministry accused the United States of making "gangster-like" claims for its unilateral disarmament.

Some experts say Kim is using diplomacy as a way to win outside concessions and weaken US-led international sanctions.

Many in Iran has expressed frustration that Trump has appeared willing to engage with North Korea, which has openly boasted of nuclear weapons, but not Iran, which signed the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

other nations involved – Germany, Britain, France, Russia and the European Union – have reaffirmed their support for the deal and have been working to keep Iran on board

"Iran is angry since Trump respond to Tehran's engagement diplomacy by pulling the US out of the nuclear deal, "Iranian lawmaker Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh told the AP.

He added, however, the war of words between the two presidents was to be expected, since diplomatic relations between the two countries have been frozen.

"They express themselves through speeches since diplomatic channels are closed," said Falahatpisheh, who heads the influential parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy. 19659002] On Sunday in California, Pompeo was strongly critical of Iran, calling its religious leaders "hypocritical holy men" who ambaded vast sums of wealth while allowing their people to suffer.

In the speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum , Pompeo castigated Iran's political, judicial and military leaders, accusing several by name of participating in widespread corruption. He also said that the government has "heartlessly repressed its own people's rights, dignity and fundamental freedoms."

He said, "The proud Iranian people are not staying silent about their government's many abuses," Pompeo said.

"And the United States under President Trump will not stay silent."