Washington seeking diplomatic outcome with Iran, allies – State Department official

Washington wants a diplomatic outcome with Tehran that addresses threats from its nuclear programs and “destabilizing” regional activities, a senior State Department official said on Friday. The statement came more than a week after US President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 Iran nuclear accord with world powers and ahead of a speech focused on Iran by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday, Reuters said. “The goal of our effort is to bring all necessary pressure to bear on Iran to change its behavior and to pursue a new framework that can resolve our concerns,” senior policy advisor Brian Hook told reporters. "We very much want to be, to have a kind of uptempo diplomacy, one that’s very focused and very determined to achieve our national security objectives,” Hook said.