Mr. Ahmadinejad, trying to make the case that no additional sanctions would derail Iran's uranium enrichment program, declared that "the nuclear issue of Iran is now closed".
And the disciplinary said "no additional sanction was necessary".
Faced with possible additional sanctions and a credible military option, Iran is more likely to concede without the need for military action.
Its key points include: Additional targeted individual sanctions or a potential arms embargo, would be hard to agree amongst the EU's 28 member states and their impact remains unclear, though there may be some scope for a group of EU states to move ahead with some additional sanctions if it's not possible to get agreement at the level of all 28.
In particular, with the Trump administration's talk of a military strike against North Korea and with the United States applying pressure on Beijing to comply with additional sanctions, China was caught between two undesirable outcomes: a military conflict or agreeing to inflict significant economic stress on North Korea, both of which could lead to instability on its doorstep.
A spokesman for the British Foreign Office said that the six powers had agreed in a conference call that while informal contacts with Iran would continue, the major powers had no choice but to pursue additional sanctions against Iran.
The United States, France and Britain, by contrast, are eager to continue to press Iran with additional sanctions if it does not comply.
"The optimal solution is a comprehensive deal, but if that is not possible negotiators may opt for a more robust interim agreement with additional sanctions relief for more steps to freeze the nuclear problem," said Goldenberg, now the Middle East security director and the Centre for a New American Security.
It is possible that President Trump could exacerbate this situation with additional sanctions on Venezuela or Iran, but OPEC and Russia would likely raise production to offset shortfalls by those countries.
Some propose targeting Russia with additional sanctions, which would not likely dissuade Moscow from acting on behalf of what it perceives as its important interests.
Here's a best-case scenario: After Trump announces his decision, Congress, instead of demanding new sanctions, endorses negotiations to improve the deal, perhaps with additional sanctions authority to give the president more leverage.
