While U.S. and European diplomats pursue a fourth round of UN sanctions on Iran, the Bush administration and Congress are moving forward with a parallel strategy of using U.S. financial clout to tighten the noose on the Iranian economy. The Department of the Treasury July 8 and Aug. 12 froze the U.S. assets of 13 individuals and organizations with connections to Iran's nuclear and missile programs. Meanwhile, European energy giants Total and StatoilHydro announced they would hold off from future investment in Iran's oil and gas sectors, apparently in response to growing pressure from sanctions. (Continue)

Over the past month, the issue of how the United States will address Iran’s nuclear program has become one of the centerpieces of the foreign policy debate between the two presumptive major-party presidential candidates. The candidates differ in particular on their perceptions of the usefulness of direct dialogue with Iran, with Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) indicating that he would drop U.S. preconditions for meeting with Iran and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) declaring that such an approach would only strengthen the ruling regime in Tehran. (Continue)