Press secretary: Pentagon wants to 'lower the temperature' with Iran

Defense Department officials want to tamp down the recent sharp rhetoric between the United States and Iran, Pentagon press secretary George Little said Thursday.

The Pentagon wants to “lower the temperature” between the two nations, Little said. He told reporters at a Pentagon briefing that defense officials feel there has been some cooling in recent days.

Tensions between the two nations have been high since November, when an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report concluded Iran is closer than ever to obtaining a nuclear weapon.

The two nations’ leaders and lawmakers have traded barbs since. Iran has threatened to close the Straight of Hormuz, a major oil transport point, while U.S. officials have made clear a nuclear-armed Iran is a “red line” for Washington, saying a military strike is on the table.

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