Iran Resumes Uranium Enrichment as US Pulls Out of Nuclear Deal…
Iran has swiftly announced its reaction to the dumping of the 2015 nuclear deal by unilateralist United States President, Donald Trump, saying it could resume uranium enrichment, ‘ without limit’.
President Hassan Rouhani announced this yesterday, moments after Trump jettisoned the deal signed by five other European powers, including France, Britain and Germany.
Earlier, Iranian state television said yesterday that Trump’s decision to withdraw the US from the Iran nuclear deal was “illegal, illegitimate and undermines international agreements.”
Trump said he was reimposing economic sanctions on Iran and pulling the US out of an international agreement aimed at stopping Tehran from obtaining a nuclear bomb.
Trump yesterday pulled the US out of an international dealaimed at stopping Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb, saying he would reimpose economic sanctions on Tehran immediately.
The decision is likely to raise the risk of conflict in the Middle East, upset America’s European allies and disrupt global oil supplies, according to Reuters.
“This was a horrible one- sided deal that should have never, ever been made,” Reuters quoted Trump as saying at the White House. “It didn’t bring calm. It didn’t bring peace. And it never will.”
He also called the nuclear deal with Iran “decaying and rotten”, as well as “an embarrassment” to him “as a citizen”.
Trump’s decision to jettison the deal took no one by surprise. Hints before his Tuesday announcement suggested he had informedFrench President Emmanuel Macron that the United States was going to pull out of the international agreement with Iran, Reuters credited the New York Times as reporting and citing a person briefed on the conversation.
The source, according to the newspaper, said the United States is preparing to reinstate all sanctions it had waived as part of the deal and impose additional economic penalties.
The 2015 deal, the signature foreign policy achievement of Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama, eased sanctions on Iran in exchange for Tehran limiting its nuclear programme to prevent it from being able to make an atomic bomb.
Trump has frequently criticised the Iran accord, worked out by the US and five other international powers and Iran, because it does not address Iran’s ballistic missile programme, its nuclear activities beyond 2025, nor its role in conflicts in Yemen and Syria.
UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson had cautioned Mr Trump not to “throw the baby out with the bathwater” on Monday, while his French counterpart Jean- Yves Le Drian made clear that France, the UK and Germany would continue to honour the accord.
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has warned that his country could face “some problems” in the coming months, but stressed it will “keep working with the world”.
Trump said he was willing to negotiate a new deal with Iran, but Tehran has already ruled that out and threatened unspecified retaliation if Washington pulled out.
Iranian state television said on Tuesday that Trump’s decision to withdraw was “illegal, illegitimate and undermines international agreements.”
Renewing sanctions would make it much harder for Iran to sell its oil abroad or use the international banking system.
The Iran deal may remain partially intact, even without the United States. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani suggested on Monday that Iran could remain in the accord with the other signatories that stay committed to it.
Trump’s move is a snub to European allies such as France, Britain and Germany who are also part of the Iran deal and tried hard to convince the US president to preserve it. The Europeans must now scramble to decide their own course of action with Tehran.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres says he is deeply concerned by the US decision to withdraw from Iran nuclear deal, and calls on all other parties to fully abide by deal’s commitments.
A statement, France, Germany and the UK - fellow signatories to the deal - said they “regret” the American decision.
According to BBC, the European Union’s top diplomat, Federica Mogherini, said the EU was “determined to preserve” the deal.
But Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu s a y s he “f u l l y supports” Mr Trump’s “bold” withdr a w a l f rom a “disastrous” deal.