WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump slapped fresh sanctions on Iran's weapons procurement network, provoking an angry response from Tehran in what is an increasingly tense stand-off.
Officials said the new measures were in response to Iran's recent ballistic missile test and its support for the Huthi rebels in Yemen, who recently targeted a Saudi warship.
The new sanctions do not yet mean that the US has abandoned commitments it made under the deal to lift measures aimed at Iran's nuclear program, officials said.
But Trump has made no secret of his contempt for that accord, which his predecessor Barack Obama approved in July 2015, and officials said Friday's measures would not be the last.
"Iran is playing with fire - they don't appreciate how 'kind' President Obama was to them. Not me!" Trump tweeted.
During a visit to Tokyo on Saturday, US Defence Secretary James Mattis called Iran "the single biggest state sponsor of terrorism in the world."
"It does no good to ignore it. It does no good to dismiss it," he said, but added that there are no plans to increase US troops in the Middle East.
Hardline US National Security Adviser Michael Flynn also drew a stark line in the sand.
"The days of turning a blind eye to Iran's hostile and belligerent actions toward the United States and the world community are over," he said.
"This behavior seems continuous despite the very favorable deal given to Iran by the Obama Administration. These sanctions target these behaviors."
Iran on Saturday was set to stage a show of defiance by deploying missiles for a Revolutionary Guards exercise.
The Guards' Sepahnews website said the maneuvers were aimed at demonstrating their "complete preparedness to deal with the threats" and "humiliating sanctions" from Washington.
A list of missiles to be deployed, published on the site, showed they were of very short range -- up to 47 miles (75 kilometers).
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