Rex Tillerson accuses Iran of 'alarming provocations'

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has warned that "alarming provocations" from Iran could destabilise other states in the Middle East, and made a comparison between it and the isolated North Korea regime.

The White House announced a review of its relationship with Iran on Wednesday, which will look at whether the state has complied with the terms of its deal to reduce nuclear arms in 2015, as well as its influence over other nations in the region.

In a statement released by the former ExxonMobil Corp CEO, he attempted to address the "alarming and ongoing provocations that export terror, violence."

The White House announced a review of its relationship with Iran on Wednesday

"An unchecked Iran has the potential to travel the same path as North Korea, and take the world along with it...whether it be assassination attempts, support of weapons of mass destruction, deploying destabilizing militias, Iran spends its treasure and time disrupting peace," the statement read.

Donald Trump's administration has become more heavily involved in foreign affairs during the last month, with tensions rising in relations between Washington and several other states, including Russia and North Korea.

While Tillerson acknowledged that Iran appears to be complying with the nuclear deal, he expressed a fear that its influence on other states in the Middle East was threatening peace in the region.

"Iran is the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism and is responsible for intensifying multiple conflicts and undermining U.S. interests in countries such as Syria, Yemen, Iraq, and Lebanon, and continuing to support attacks against Israel."