Don’t dump Iran deal, Johnson tells Trump

london — British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has appealed to US President Donald Trump not to end the Iran nuclear agreement, saying the deal had weaknesses but these could be addressed given time.

Trump has said that unless European allies rectify “flaws” in Tehran’s deal with world powers by May 12 he will refuse to extend US sanctions relief for Iran.

Britain, France and Germany remain committed to the accord as is, but to address US concerns they want to open talks on Iran’s ballistic missile programme, its nuclear activities beyond 2025 — when key provisions of the deal start to expire — and its role in Middle East crises such as Syria and Yemen.

“It has weaknesses, certainly, but I am convinced they can be remedied,” Johnson wrote in an opinion piece for the New York Times. “Indeed at this moment Britain is working alongside the Trump administration and our French and German allies to ensure that they are.”

Johnson began a two-day visit to the United States on Sunday to try to convince Trump’s administration not to ditch the deal and was due to meet Vice President Mike Pence and national security adviser John Bolton, although not the president himself.

The foreign secretary said he saw no advantage in losing the “handcuffs” the deal imposed on Iran’s nuclear ambitions and only Tehran would benefit from exiting the deal. —

It (deal) has weaknesses, but I am convinced they can be remedied. Indeed at this moment Britain is working alongside the Trump administration and our French and German allies to ensure that they are. Boris Johnson, British Foreign Secretary