As ‘tough’ Iran talks resume, Biden issues a warning.

AFP/WASHINGTON/WASHINGTON/WASHINGTON/WASHINGTON/WASH President Joe Biden said on Thursday that the US was planning “further measures” against Iran, as fears mount that talks to end Tehran’s nuclear programme may fail.

As tense discussions with Iran started in Vienna, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki stated, “The president has ordered his staff to be prepared in the event that diplomacy fails and we must resort to other alternatives.”

“We won’t be able to avoid taking extra actions,” she continued.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with Israeli counterpart Benny Gantz at the Pentagon, and the two sides agreed to increase cooperation in the face of the Iranian “threat.”

“I’m quite concerned about the Iranian government’s recent nuclear moves, both its continuous provocations and its lack of constructive diplomatic engagement,” Austin said.

International diplomats resumed discussions on Iran’s nuclear programme on Thursday in what the chair of the meeting described as a “tough endeavour” to resurrect the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and Western powers, which Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump abruptly pulled out of.