2018年CRI Trump pulls US out of the Iran deal, triggering outcry

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US President Donald Trump¹ has announced that the US is pulling out of the Joint² Comprehensive Plan of Action, better known as the Iran nuclear deal, ending a major international diplomatic legacy³ from the Obama era.

US President Donald Trump has made his announcement from the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House.

"Therefore, I am announcing today that the United States will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal. In a few moments, I will sign a presidential memorandum⁴ to begin reinstating U.S. nuclear sanctions on the Iranian regime. We will be instituting the highest level of economic sanction. Any nation that helps Iran in its quest for nuclear weapons could also be strongly sanctioned by the United States."

Pulling the US out of the deal has been a campaign promise long in the making for Trump.

He's been critical of what he's repeatedly described as a "bad deal" since he began his campaign for President, and repeated his argument on Tuesday.

"The agreement was so poorly negotiated that even if Iran fully⁵ complies, the regime can still be on the verge⁶ of a nuclear breakout in just a short period of time. The deal's sunset provisions are totally unacceptable. If I allowed this deal to stand, there would soon be a nuclear arms race in the Middle East. Everyone would want their weapons ready by the time Iran had theirs."

Trump's decision runs counter from advice by the United States' European allies such as France and the UK.

French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor⁷ Merkel, British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, among others, have all visited Washington in the past few weeks for an intensive effort to persuade Trump to stay in.

Moving forward, Trump says the US will work on finding a different solution to deal with Iran's nuclear issues.

"As we exit the Iran deal, we will be working with our allies to find a real, comprehensive, and lasting⁸ solution to the Iranian nuclear threat."

On top of re-imposing US sanctions on Iran, Trump now says US foreign policy toward Iran will work on broader terms, including containing Iran in the Middle East.

Immediately following Trump's announcement, former US President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State John Kerry, both key figures in constructing the Iran deal, released statements opposing Trump's decision.

Obama is callilng Trump's announcement "a serious mistake," while Kerry goes even further, saying the announcement weakens US security, breaks its word and isolates⁹ itself from its European allies.

In 2015, Iran agreed to curtail¹⁰ its nuclear program in a deal with the P5+1 group of world powers: namely the US, the UK, France, China, Russia and Germany.

The deal came after years of tensions over Iran's alleged¹¹ efforts to develop a nuclear weapon, despite Iran insisting that its nuclear program is entirely¹² peaceful.

Under the terms of the agreement, Iran has limited its sensitive nuclear activities and allowed in international inspectors¹³ in return for the lifting of crippling economic sanctions.

UNILATERAL SANCTIONS TO COME

The White House said later that Trump had "directed his administration to immediately begin the process of re-imposing sanctions related to the JCPOA," and "the re-imposed sanctions will target critical sectors¹⁴ of Iran's economy, such as its energy, petrochemical, and financial sectors."

"Those doing business in Iran will be provided a period of time to allow them to wind down operations in or business involving Iran," it added. "Those who fail to wind down such activities with Iran by the end of the period will risk severe consequences." 

U.S. Secretary of Treasury¹⁵ Steven Mnuchin noted¹⁶ in an announcement that "sanctions will be reimposed subject to certain 90 day and 180 day wind-down periods."

"At the conclusion of the wind-down periods, the applicable sanctions will come back into full effect. This includes actions under both our primary and secondary sanctions authorities," he added.

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that the United States "will be working with our allies to find a real, comprehensive, and lasting solution to the Iranian threat."

GLOBAL OUTCRY

Trump's decision to abandon the Iran deal signed between Iran and the six world powers of Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States has sparked domestic and global concerns.

Europe

In a joint statement released by Macron's office, French, German and British leaders regretted the U.S. decision.

Macron, Merkel and Theresa May reiterated¹⁷ their "continued commitment" to the Iran nuclear deal, stressing that it "is of particular importance to our shared security."

Europe will abide¹⁸ by the JCPOA, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said, adding she was "particularly worried" about the possible repercussions¹⁹ of Trump's decision.

Russia

The Russian Foreign Ministry²⁰ said Tuesday in a statement that Moscow is deeply disappointed by the U.S. withdrawal²¹ from the Iran nuclear deal and there are no grounds for such a move.

Russia remains²² open to further interaction with other participants of the Iran nuclear deal and will continue to actively²³ develop bilateral²⁴ cooperation and political dialogue with Iran, the ministry said.

United Nations

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday voiced "deep concern" over U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to pull his country out of the Iran nuclear deal.

"I call on other JCPOA participants to abide fully by their respective commitments under the JCPOA and on all other (UN) member states to support this agreement," said Guterres.

Middle East

The U.S. decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal has sparked mixed opinions in the Middle East region, with Iran, Syria and Turkey condemning²⁵ the move to cause instability while Israel and some Arab Gulf²⁶ states supporting the announcement.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that his country will remain in the deal, adding he has asked the Iranian foreign minister to initiate²⁷ negotiations²⁸ with the European partners as well as China and Russia over the fate of the deal.

China

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on April 27 that China expects the deal to remain intact and be treated seriously.

"China calls for all related parties to strengthen dialogue and coordination²⁹" over the deal, she said.