Bloomberg | Nikos Chrysoloras & Jonathan Stearns: A joint press conference by the�European Union�s foreign-policy chief and the U.S. Secretary of State descended into a thinly veiled exchange of rebukes, adding to signs of increased strain in the world�s most powerful alliance.

�The Iran nuclear deal is a key strategic priority for European security but also for regional and global security,� the EU�s Federica Mogherini told reporters on Tuesday, emphasizing that the agreement only dealt with nuclear issues. �Dismantling an agreement on nuclear issues that is working -- as the International Energy Agency has certified nine times -- would not put us in a better position to discuss all the rest on the country.�

That conflicts with U.S. President Donald Trump�s plan to pull the plug out of the Iran nuclear deal, which has drawn sharp criticism from the EU. The bloc has been lobbying Congress to overrule the president�s decision, saying that scrapping the accord would endanger stability in the wider region.

�Iran is carrying out a number of destabilizing actions in the region and we�ve seen this recently with ballistic missiles being fired from Yemen, which is our belief are sourced from Iran,� U.S. Secretary of State�Rex Tillerson said after Mogherini�s comments. Even though the EU says that any such concerns shouldn�t lead to the dismantling of the nuclear accord, Tillerson said that �these issues and activities of Iran cannot be ignored and cannot go unanswered and we intend to continue to take action to ensure Iran understands this.�

Capital of Israel

The quarrel adds to a long list of disputes that have come between the U.S. and the EU -- from trade protectionism to environmental policies, and from Trump�s apparent endorsement of far-right groups in Europe to his threat of unilateral military action against�North Korea.

The latest episode in the saga is over the possibility that the U.S. might unilaterally recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. �A way must be found, through negotiations, to resolve the status of Jerusalem as the future capital of both states,� Mogherini said in her joint press statement with Tillerson. �We believe that any action that would undermine this effort must absolutely be avoided.�

Germany�s acting foreign minister, Sigmar Gabriel, said unilateral U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel�s capital would inflame Middle East tensions.

�That would be a very dangerous development,� Gabriel told reporters on Tuesday at a meeting of foreign ministers from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

After his bilateral meeting with Mogherini, Tillerson was due to meet his EU counterparts, ahead of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels. Mogherini and Tillerson didn�t accept questions after the briefing.

� With assistance by Richard Bravo, and Zoe Schneeweiss