Obama warns U.S. Congress against more sanctions on Iran

(Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama warned lawmakers on Friday not to trigger new sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program, saying such a move would upset diplomatic talks and increase the likelihood of a military conflict with Tehran.

In a joint news conference at the White House, Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron urged members of Congress to be patient and hold off on legislation calling for further sanctions.

"There is no good argument for us to try to undercut, undermine the negotiations until they've played themselves out," Obama told reporters.

"Congress needs to show patience," he added. "My main message to Congress is: 'Just hold your fire.'"  Obama said he told Democratic lawmakers he would veto a bill calling for new sanctions if it landed on his desk.

The joint push with Cameron, who said he had personally called U.S. senators about the issue, represented the strongest effort yet by the White House to prevent U.S. lawmakers from both parties from seeking to force additional penalties on Tehran.

The United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China are in talks with Iran to forge a deal over Tehran's nuclear program. They failed to meet a self-imposed deadline for a solution in November. Obama put the chances of an eventual deal at 50/50.  More at Obama warns U.S. Congress against more sanctions on Iran