Iran's nuclear claim is 'hype': US

The US played down Iran's claim of a "major" nuclear breakthrough as an exaggeration to bolster nationalism amid tighter sanctions rather than a step toward developing an atomic weapon.

"Our view on this is that it's not terribly new and it's not terribly impressive," said State Department Spokeswoman Victoria Nuland. The announcement was "hyped" for a domestic audience, she said. The assessments came as the EU received a letter from Iran about resuming negotiations.u00a0