28 Mar 2024
Friday 21 April 2017 - 11:27
Story Code : 258027

Why Trump can't rip up Iran's internationally brokered nuclear deal

Sputnik - While the Trump administration admitted that Iran has complied with the 2015 nuclear agreement, it continues to send mixed signals to Tehran, accusing the latter of sponsoring terrorism. Speaking to Sputnik Persian, Hamid Gholamzadeh assumed that Washington is looking for any excuse to rip the deal up.





Although the Trump administration admitted Tuesday that Iran is complying withthe terms ofthe 2015 nuclear agreement and extended the sanctions relief given toTehran, US Secretary ofState Rex Tillerson leveled criticism atIran onWednesday, dubbing the deal a "failed approach."

Tillerson emphasized that the US is going tocarry outa "comprehensive review" ofits policy towardIran, which, according tothe Secretary ofState, is aboutto follow inNorth Korea's footsteps.

"The Trump administration is currently conducting acrossthe entire government a review ofour Iran policy an unchecked Iran has the potential tofollow the same path asNorth Korea and take the world alongwith it. The United States is keen toavoid a second piece ofevidence that strategic patience is a failed approach," Tillerson said as quoted byCNBC.

As if that were not enough, Tillerson continues toinsist that Iran is sponsoring terrorism.

Previously, the Trump cabinet signaled that it is determined tofind outwhether the Iranian nuclear deal really reflects US national security interests.

"President Donald J. Trump has directed a National Security Council-led interagency review ofthe Joint Comprehensive Plan ofAction (JCPOA) that will evaluate whether suspension ofsanctions related toIran pursuant tothe JCPOA is vital tothe national security interests ofthe United States," Secretary ofState Rex Tillerson said ina letter toSpeaker ofthe House ofRepresentatives Paul Ryan.

Speaking to Sputnik Persian, Hamed Mousavi, a professor atthe Department ofPolitical Sciences ofthe University ofTehran, highlighted that Iran's nuclear agreement is an international deal inthe first place.
"One should pay attention toa few points, inparticular, the multilateral nature ofthe obligations underthe JCPOA. The US should not forget that a nuclear deal is not a bilateral agreement between [Washington] and Iran. The United States cannot unilaterally abolish the international agreement that was signed byIran and several other countries and which was approved bythe UN Security Council. This is contrary tointernational law," Mousavi emphasized.


Grigory Yarygin, Associate Professor atthe Department ofAmerican Studies ofthe School ofInternational Relations atSt.Petersburg State University, echoed Mousavi.
"This nuclear deal was concluded not only betweenTehran and Washington, butit is Iran's deal withsix international mediators. Therefore, it is highly unlikely that the attempt tocancel this deal will succeed," Yarygin told Radio Sputnik.


"We must understand that atthe international level, significant efforts were made toease tensions betweenIran and the United States and prevented possible tragic consequences related tothe [Iranian] nuclear program," he said.


For his part, Hamid Gholamzadeh, an expert onNorth America and English Chief Editor ofMehr News Agency, suggested inan interview with Sputnik Persian that Washington is looking foran excuse toundermine the deal.
"The US has recognized that Iran is fulfilling its obligations. But this did not convince them. Therefore, the US is looking fornew pretexts, which they want toprove using the relevant documents. Despite the reaffirmation ofIran's commitment toits obligations, the US accused it ofsupporting terrorism inorder toobtain a justification [for imposing sanctions]," Gholamzadeh explained.


"I believe that the US will play outits own scenario: they will try toreimpose the sanctions, unless Europe, Russia and China, asthe main negotiators, try toprevent these plans," he added.


The question then arises asto why the new administration is pushing ahead withits plan torip the Iran nuclear deal up?

Robbie Gramer ofForeign Policy magazine believes that Donald Trump is seeking torestore US-Saudi relations, which were undermined bythe US nuclear deal struck underObama.

Gramer called attention tothe fact that onTuesday, Secretary ofDefense James Mattis visited Riyadh todiscuss the Pentagon's support forthe Saudi-led campaign inYemen. Meanwhile, onWednesday Tillerson addressed the US-Saudi business summit inWashington, "touting bilateral business ties asa way forthe two countries' relations 'to be taken tonew heights'."
"The joint appearances byMattis and Tillerson showcase a warming ofUS-Saudi relations underTrump aftereight years oftension withformer President Barack Obama's administration," the journalist assumed, stressing that "one ofthe biggest points ofcontention betweenWashington and Riyadh inrecent years was the Iran nuclear deal."


However, it is still unclear how Trump is going toappease Riyadh and deliver onhis election promise totear upthe Iran nuclear deal.

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