Iran sanctions

MOSCOW (AP) -- President Vladimir Putin on Monday opened the way for Russia's delivery of a sophisticated air defense missile system to Iran, a move that would significantly bolster the Islamic republic's military capability.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Iran is staking out a tough bargaining stance for the final phase of nuclear negotiations, with both its supreme leader and its moderate president saying Thursday that any deal must include an immediate lifting of withering sanctions.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- As Iran's nuclear negotiators returned home with the framework of a deal with world powers, joyous revelers joked that "still, there is no whiskey" in the Islamic Republic, a jab at its theocratic government. But hard-liners here aren't laughing.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama is defending a framework nuclear understanding with Iran as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to prevent a bomb and bring longer-term security to the Middle East, insisting the U.S. will stand in defense of Israel.

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) -- A senior U.S. official says Iranian negotiators confronted their American counterparts about a letter from Senate Republicans warning that any nuclear agreement could expire the day President Barack Obama leaves office.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama says the United States would "walk away" from nuclear talks with Iran if there's no acceptable deal.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Defying President Barack Obama, House Speaker John Boehner announced on Wednesday that he's invited Israel's prime minister to stand before Congress and push for new sanctions against its archenemy Iran.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama came out swinging Friday against congressional attempts to slap fresh sanctions on Iran, warning such a move would likely destroy nuclear talks and increase prospects for a military showdown. Vowing to veto any sanctions that reach his desk, Obama pleaded, "Just hold your fire."

WASHINGTON (AP) -- France's largest bank, BNP Paribas, has agreed to pay nearly $9 billion to resolve criminal allegations that it processed transactions for clients in Sudan and other blacklisted countries in violation of U.S. trade sanctions, the Justice Department announced Monday. The bank pleaded guilty to state charges in New York and plans another guilty plea in federal court next month. Re

VIENNA (AP) -- Any thaw in relations between Iran and the United States under the pressure of Iraq's turmoil is unlikely to hasten progress in difficult negotiations seeking limits on Tehran's nuclear program.