New U.S. sanctions on Iran now could torpedo nuclear deal - U.S. envoy Power

NEW YORK (Reuters) - It is still possible to reach a nuclear deal with Iran, but new Congressional sanctions could seriously undermine prospects for an agreement and end up isolating Washington instead of Tehran, the U.S. envoy to the United Nations said on Monday. "Some members of Congress believe that the time has come to ratchet up sanctions on Iran," U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power said in a speech at the McConnell Center at the University of Louisville. "They argue that this is the most effective way to achieve the goal of getting Iran to give up its nuclear program." "We in the administration believe that, at this time, increasing sanctions would dramatically undermine our efforts to reach this shared goal," she said in the speech, which was broadcast live on the Internet. (Reporting by Louis Charbonneau; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)