CANNES - US President Barack Obama said he and French President Nicolas
Sarkozy agreed during talks on Thursday on the need for pressure to be
maintained on Iran over its nuclear program.
"We had the
opportunity to talk about a range of security issues," Obama told
reporters following talks with Sarkozy ahead of a G20 heads of state
summit in the French resort of Cannes.
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by Iran's nuclear program. The IAEA is scheduled to release a report on
Iran's nuclear program next week and President Sarkozy and I agree on
the need to maintain the unprecedented pressure on Iran to meet its
obligations."
Later on Thursday, a White House spokesperson indicated that next week's report from the IAEA nuclear watchdog will be an important point for the world to assess whether Iran is meeting its obligations.
On Wednesday,
a US congressional committee approved tougher sanctions on
Iran, hitting out at Tehran's central bank following an
alleged Iranian plot to kill the Saudi ambassador to Washington.
The
bipartisan legislation has good prospects for clearing the House of
Representatives in the near future. In the Senate, lawmakers in both
parties are working on similar legislation, increasing the likelihood
that some version will become law.