Iran lawmakers demand Rouhani cut ties with UAE

A group of Iranian lawmakers have called on the country's leader to review relations with the UAE, the Fars News Agency reported.

Sixty-one legislators on Tuesday called on President Hassan Rouhani to "review all-out relations with the UAE in an attempt to change and lower interactions" during an open session of parliament.

The move came after the UAE-backed US threats to "slap the strongest sanctions in history" on Tehran.

The UAE's Foreign Minister Anwar Gargash said on Monday that the US was taking the right approach on Iran with its demands that Tehran make wholesale changes in its military and regional policies.

"US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's approach to Iranian policy was correct," Gargash tweeted.

"The tough strategy he declared was a natural result of Iranian behaviour over the years. Uniting efforts is the correct path for Iran to realise the futility of its incursions and expansionism," he added.

The UAE remains a main trading partner with Iran despite downgrading diplomatic ties in 2016 in the wake of Iranian protests over the execution of a prominent Saudi Shia cleric.

Pompeo on Monday warned Tehran would be hit with the "strongest sanctions in history" and cautioned European firms against continuing to do business with it, toughening up Washington's policy line after its withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.

In his first major foreign policy address, the longtime Iran hawk and ardent opponent of the 2015 nuclear pact outlined an aggressive series of moves designed to counter Tehran, which he called the world's top sponsor of terror.

Rouhani quickly dismissed the threats, saying the rest of the world no longer accepts Washington making decisions on their behalf.