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European Leaders Condemn Trump’s Decision on Iran European Leaders Criticize Trump’s Disavowal of Iran Deal
(about 4 hours later)
President Trump’s long-expected announcement on Friday that he would disavow the Iran nuclear deal was immediately condemned by European leaders, who view the accord as essential for averting another conflict in the Middle East at a time when the world is worried about tensions on the Korean Peninsula. LONDON — Iran, Russia and European leaders roundly condemned President Trump’s decision on Friday to disavow the Iran nuclear deal, saying that it reflected the growing isolation of the United States, threatened to destabilize the Middle East and could make it harder to resolve the growing tensions on the Korean penninsula.
In an unusual joint statement, Prime Minister Theresa May of Britain, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and President Emmanuel Macron of France said that they “stand committed” to the 2015 deal and that preserving it was “in our shared national security interest.” The reaction was far from panicked, as Mr. Trump’s decision punts to Congress the critical decision of whether the United States will reimpose sanctions on Iran — a step that would effectively sink the deal.
“The nuclear deal was the culmination of 13 years of diplomacy and was a major step towards ensuring that Iran’s nuclear program is not diverted for military purposes,” they said after Mr. Trump spoke on Friday, noting that the United Nations Security Council had unanimously endorsed the deal and that the International Atomic Energy Agency had confirmed Iran’s compliance with it. But Mr. Trump also warned that unless the nuclear agreement was altered and made permanent — to prohibit Iran from ever developing nuclear weapons — he would terminate the agreement, an ultimatum that threw the future of the accord into question.
“We encourage the U.S. Administration and Congress to consider the implications to the security of the U.S. and its allies before taking any steps that might undermine” the nuclear agreement, including reimposing sanctions on Iran, the leaders added. Though they avoided direct criticism of Mr. Trump, Prime Minister Theresa May of Britain, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and President Emmanuel Macron of France said in a rare joint statement that they “stand committed” to the 2015 nuclear deal and that preserving it was “in our shared national security interest.”
But Saudi Arabia and Israel, which are both adversaries of Iran, welcomed Mr. Trump’s announcement that he would no longer certify the nuclear deal with Iran. “The nuclear deal was the culmination of 13 years of diplomacy and was a major step towards ensuring that Iran’s nuclear program is not diverted for military purposes,” they added.
Mr. Trump’s decision does not terminate the agreement with Iran. Instead, it leaves it to Congress to decide whether to impose new sanctions on Iran — a step that would effectively trash the deal. Sigmar Gabriel, Germany’s foreign minister, said that Mr. Trump was sending “a difficult and also from our point of view dangerous signal.”
He said that the Iran deal, and other diplomatic achievements, were necessary “to convince countries like North Korea, and maybe also others, that it is possible to create security without acquiring nuclear weapons.”
“Destroying this agreement would, worldwide, mean that others could no longer rely on such agreements — that’s why it is a danger that goes further than Iran,” he added.
Reaction from Iran was quick and pointed. Appearing on television, its president, Hassan Rouhani, denounced Mr. Trump and called the United States an outlier that had become “more lonely than ever” in the international community. Mr. Rouhani did not threaten to withdraw from the deal, but made it clear that he would not renegotiate the terms, either.
“The statements of Mr. Trump are nothing but abuse and threats against the people of Iran,” he said. “An international agreement cannot be disregarded.”
The European leaders noted that the United Nations Security Council had unanimously endorsed the deal, and that the International Atomic Energy Agency had confirmed Iran’s compliance with it.
But Mr. Trump’s aggressive stance on Iran won plaudits from several nations on Friday, specifically from adversaries of Iran like Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister who has always opposed the agreement with Iran, said that Mr. Trump’s announcement created “an opportunity to fix this bad deal” and was a sign of Mr. Trump’s determination to “boldly confront Iran’s terrorist regime.”Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister who has always opposed the agreement with Iran, said that Mr. Trump’s announcement created “an opportunity to fix this bad deal” and was a sign of Mr. Trump’s determination to “boldly confront Iran’s terrorist regime.”
Saudi Arabia, which has waged a proxy battle against Iran for supremacy in the region and was the first country Mr. Trump visited after taking office, said it welcomed what it called a “new U.S. strategy” toward Iran.Saudi Arabia, which has waged a proxy battle against Iran for supremacy in the region and was the first country Mr. Trump visited after taking office, said it welcomed what it called a “new U.S. strategy” toward Iran.
In his remarks on Friday, Mr. Trump warned that unless the nuclear agreement with Iran could be changed and made permanent — to prevent Iran from ever developing nuclear weapons — then he would terminate the deal. The United Arab Emirates, which like Saudi Arabia is a predominantly Sunni Muslim country with a sizable Shiite minority, also said that it “fully supports” Mr. Trump’s stance on Iran.
Mr. Trump did not give a deadline. But under the current arrangement, Mr. Trump said, “Iran can sprint” toward the development of nuclear weapons when the deal’s restrictions expire. Some leaders declared that the deal, reached in 2015 between Iran and six world powers, including the United States, was not something that Mr. Trump could cancel, contending that Mr. Trump was essentially putting on a show for his political base.
“The president of the United States has many powers — not this one,” the European Union’s top diplomat, Federica Mogherini, said at a news conference in Brussels.
She said that there had been no violations of the agreement and that the world could not afford to dismantle an accord that “is working and delivering,” especially at a time of “acute nuclear threat,” referring to the standoff with North Korea over its nuclear program.
Criticism of the nuclear deal was a central theme of Mr. Trump’s candidacy for president, and he has repeatedly called for revisiting what he sees as a fatally flawed agreement.
Mr. Trump said on Friday that under the current deal “Iran can sprint” toward the development of nuclear weapons when the deal’s restrictions expire.
Some of the prohibitions in the agreement are set to end in 2025, including limits on the number of its centrifuges. Iran, which has always maintained that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, not for weapons, would not agree to a permanent freeze in its ability to enrich nuclear fuel.Some of the prohibitions in the agreement are set to end in 2025, including limits on the number of its centrifuges. Iran, which has always maintained that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, not for weapons, would not agree to a permanent freeze in its ability to enrich nuclear fuel.
That must be changed, Mr. Trump said, or he would scrap the deal altogether.That must be changed, Mr. Trump said, or he would scrap the deal altogether.
Iran has long resisted the idea of renegotiating the nuclear agreement in the West’s favor. Last month, its foreign minister rejected extending the length or conditions of the accord, saying that Iran would only consider changing the agreement if the concessions it has already made — including giving up nuclear fuel — were reconsidered. Russia, which took part in the negotiations to reach the accord and has warned Mr. Trump not to rescind it, said that the president had no basis for disavowing the deal.
The foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, said that would mean Iran would retake possession of the stockpile of nuclear fuel it shipped to Russia when the accord took effect. “Iran is abiding” by the nuclear agreement, Mikhail Ulyanov, a director at the Russian foreign ministry, told the Interfax news agency. “Everyone agrees with that. And an attempt to somehow heighten the tensions in this situation looks like unmotivated aggression.”
“Are you prepared to return to us 10 tons of enriched uranium?” Mr. Zarif said of the relinquished stockpile — one of Iran’s biggest concessions. In blunt language, Ms. Mogherini, the European Union’s top diplomat, essentially looked past Mr. Trump and appealed to Congress directly.
Iran has accused the United States of violating the letter and spirit of the deal by imposing additional sanctions against it, and its mission on Friday warned that Iran might itself back away from the deal. America’s next step “is now in the hands of the United States Congress,” she said. “The international community and the European Union with it has clearly indicated that the deal is and will continue to be in place.”
“Iran has many options on how to proceed and if necessary will terminate its commitment regarding this issue,” the statement said, without elaborating. Russia urged American lawmakers to preserve the deal as well.
European leaders expressed deep concern about Mr. Trump’s decision. Like Russia and China, they have long warned the United States not to back away from the agreement. “We want to hope that Congress will not take any dramatic steps which would effectively signify a collapse” of the deal, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, told Interfax, referring to the renewed sanctions that might lead Iran to nullify the accord.
Before Mr. Trump’s announcement on Friday, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia voiced alarm at the prospect of Mr. Trump’s undermining the deal, which Iran negotiated with Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States. In his remarks, Mr. Trump accused Iran of violating both the letter and the spirit of the accord. But Iran has accused the United States of doing the same, and on Friday its mission to the United Nations warned that Iran might itself back away from the deal.
Mr. Putin’s spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, told reporters on Friday that an American withdrawal from the deal “undoubtedly will affect the atmosphere of predictability, security, stability and nonproliferation in the world,” according to Tass, the Russian news agency. “Iran has many options on how to proceed and if necessary will terminate its commitment regarding this issue,” the mission said in a statement, without elaborating.
The Russian foreign minister, Sergey V. Lavrov, called his Iranian counterpart, Mr. Zarif, to reiterate Russia’s commitment to the deal, the news agency said. Iran has also resisted the idea of renegotiating the nuclear agreement in the West’s favor. Last month, its foreign minister rejected extending the length or conditions of the accord, saying that Iran would consider changing the agreement only if the concessions it had already made — including giving up nuclear fuel — were reconsidered.
In Germany, officials have repeatedly shown support for the accord in recent days, and have warned that an American decision to walk away from it could damage the relationship between the United States and Europe.
Steffen Seibert, a German government spokesman, told reporters in Berlin on Friday that his country viewed the deal as “an important instrument to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran.”
“That’s why we will continue to work towards its full implementation,” he said. “If an important country like the United States comes to a different conclusion, as appears to be the case, we will work even harder with other partners to maintain this cohesion.”
British officials had pressed the Trump administration to respect the deal. Mrs. May called Mr. Trump to emphasize that it was “vitally important for regional security.”
Boris Johnson, the British foreign secretary, also tried to make that point to his American counterpart, Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, saying the deal was “making the world a safer place,” The Daily Telegraph reported.
Agnès Romatet-Espagne, a spokeswoman for the French Foreign Ministry, said on Friday that it viewed the deal as “an instrument at once strong, robust and verifiable, that guarantees that Iran will not develop a nuclear weapon.”
“We wish to see it fully implemented by all parties involved,” she told reporters at a news conference. “Multilateralism is the only way to solve international problems that respects all parties involved, by way of dialogue and exchange.”
Under the terms of the deal, Iran agreed to accept severe limits on its ability to enrich uranium fuel for 15 years, in exchange for the revocation or suspension of economic sanctions, including a European oil embargo.
The deal also imposed for the first time a verification mechanism that allowed the international community to make sure that Iran was abiding by its promises not to pursue nuclear weapons.
It was a major diplomatic triumph for the Obama administration, and it has been praised by arms control groups who say it helped avert a potential conflict or nuclear arms race in the Middle East.
There are fears that the basic framework of the accord could collapse if the United States walks away. Mr. Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, told reporters on Friday that Russia believed Iran would abandon the deal if the United States did.There are fears that the basic framework of the accord could collapse if the United States walks away. Mr. Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, told reporters on Friday that Russia believed Iran would abandon the deal if the United States did.
And as tensions between the United States and a nuclear-armed North Korea have escalated in recent months, European leaders have seen the Iran deal as an important example of a possible diplomatic way forward.
Germany’s foreign minister, Sigmar Gabriel, highlighted the implications of the deal for North Korea in an interview on Thursday with the German newspaper group RND. He warned that an American withdrawal could set off a scramble for nuclear weapons, threatening both international security and the European-American relationship.
“Some states could understand the breakdown of the Iran deal as a signal to provide themselves with nuclear weapons as quickly as possible,” he said. “Then we would not only have North Korea as an acute problem.”