World Showing Harsh Reaction to US Retreat from Iran N. Deal

“I am announcing today that the United States will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal,” Trump said Tuesday in a televised address from the White House.

Shortly after the US President’s remarks, the European Union’s diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini stressed that the bloc is “determined to preserve” the Iran nuclear deal, calling on the international community to preserve the agreement.

The 2015 agreement “is delivering on its goal which is guaranteeing that Iran doesn’t develop nuclear weapons, the European Union is determined to preserve it,” Mogherini stated, warning that she was “particularly worried” by the US’ announcement of fresh sanctions.

“Stay true to your commitments as we will stay true to ours and together with the rest of the international community we will preserve this nuclear deal,” Mogherini added, saying “as long as Iran continues to implement its nuclear related commitments, as it is doing so far, the European Union will remain committed to the continued full and effective implementation of the nuclear deal”.

“We fully trust the work, competence and autonomy of the International Atomic Energy Agency that has published 10 reports certifying that Iran has fully complied with its commitments,” she further noted.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May also spoke by telephone with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel after the US President made his statement over the nuclear deal.

UK, France and Germany issued a joint statement attacking the US President’s withdrawal from Iran nuclear deal, urging Washington not to take steps that would make life harder for other countries that still want to stick to the agreement.

Moments after the Washington decision, May, Merkel and Macron said the decision to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal was a matter of “regret and concern”, adding that they remained committed to the accord.

“Our governments remain committed to ensuring the agreement is upheld, and will work with all the remaining parties to the deal to ensure this remains the case, including through ensuring the continuing economic benefits to the Iranian people that are linked to the agreement,” the leaders stressed.

The European joint statement also urged Iran “to show restraint” in response to Washington decision.

“Iran must continue to meet its own obligations under the deal, cooperating fully and in a timely manner with IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) inspection requirements,” the three European leaders stated, noting that “there must be no doubt: Iran’s nuclear programs must always remain peaceful and civilian”.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement that he was “deeply concerned”, urging the remaining parties of the deal to abide by their commitments.

“It is essential that all concerns regarding the implementation of the plan be addressed through the mechanisms established in the JCPOA. Issues not directly related to the JCPOA should be addressed without prejudice to preserving the agreement and its accomplishments,” Guterres said.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Moscow is “deeply disappointed” by Washington’s decision to pull out from the Iranian nuclear deal, adding that the step taken by the US is a “flagrant violation” of the international law.

“The US once again acts contrary to the position of most countries while pursuing solely its own narrow selfish and momentary interests,” the Russian ministry stated, noting that Washington “flagrantly violates the international law”, drawing attention to the fact that “there are no reasons for disrupting” the deal.

What the US’ actions really show is that Washington is, in fact, incapable of conducting negotiations, the statement said, adding that the latest move taken by Trump only proves that the grievances the US has had against the “absolutely legal Iranian nuclear activity” have always been just a “pretext for settling political scores” with Tehran.

In wake of the US President’s decision to pull Washington out of the Iran nuclear deal, China urged all parties to the accord to stick to its terms and engage in dialog to resolve the crisis.

China’s special envoy for the Middle East Gong Xiaosheng spoke at a press conference in Iran after meeting with Iranian officials, saying the multilateral deal is “very serious and important”, adding that Beijing looks forward to bolstering cooperation between all signatories of the deal.

The Foreign Ministry had also reiterated China’s commitment to the deal, noting that the International Atomic Energy Agency is the only body that can decide on Iran’s compliance within the landmark agreement.

Syria has also strongly condemned the US President’s decision, renewing full solidarity with Tehran and expressing confidence in Iran’s capability to overcome the repercussions of Washington hostile stance.

Damascus stressed that Washington decision “proves once again the US non-commitment to the international agreements and conventions”.

Japan’s Foreign Minister Taro Kono announced that his country will continue close negotiations with related parties towards maintaining the JCPOA, adding that Tokyo would also be closely monitoring the impact from the US withdrawal from the nuclear accord.

In a written statement, the former US President, whose administration negotiated and signed the deal, issued a list of points as to why Trump’s decision is “so misguided”.

“The reality is clear. The JCPOA is working – that is a view shared by our European allies, independent experts, and the current US Secretary of Defense,” Barack Obama wrote, adding that “the JCPOA is in America’s interest – it has significantly rolled back Iran’s nuclear program. And the JCPOA is a model for what diplomacy can accomplish – its inspections and verification regime is precisely what the United States should be working to put in place with North Korea”.

“Indeed, at a time when we are all rooting for diplomacy with North Korea to succeed, walking away from the JCPOA risks losing a deal that accomplishes – with Iran – the very outcome that we are pursuing with the North Koreans,” the ex-President added.

Former US Secretary of State John Kerry also wrote that “today’s announcement weakens our security, breaks America’s word, isolates us from our European allies, puts Israel at greater risk, empowers Iran’s hardliners, and reduces our global leverage to address Tehran’s misbehavior, while damaging the ability of future Administrations to make international agreements”.

“No rhetoric is required. The facts speak for themselves. Instead of building on unprecedented nonproliferation verification measures, this decision risks throwing them away and dragging the world back to the brink we faced a few years ago,” he said.

“The extent of the damage will depend on what Europe can do to hold the nuclear agreement together, and it will depend on Iran’s reaction. America should never have to outsource those stakes to any other country. This is not in America’s interests. We should all hope the world can preserve the nuclear agreement,” Kerry added.

Following the announcement by the US President that Washington is pulling out the deal and imposing sanctions on Iran, Saudi Arabia, a regional rival of Iran and longtime Washington ally, said that it supports the US decision. Riyadh’s allies in the Persian Gulf – the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain – also welcomed Washington’s decision.

Speaking at a press conference in West Jerusalem, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also applauded the US President’s decision.

The Iranian deal was “a recipe for disaster, a disaster for our region, a disaster for the peace of the world,” Netanyahu said in a televised address just moments after Trump announced his decision in a speech in the White House.

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman also lauded Trump’s announcement, calling it “brave leadership” that would bring down the Iranian regime.

The US President announcement came despite massive efforts by the European allies of Washington to convince Trump to stay in the 2015 deal.

Under the deal signed in Vienna with six world powers – the US, UK, France, Germany, Russia, China and the European Union – Iran scaled back its uranium enrichment program and promised not to pursue nuclear weapons. Tehran has on numerous occasions asserted that its nuclear program is merely peaceful and not meant to make nukes. In exchange, international sanctions were lifted, allowing it to sell its oil and gas worldwide. United Nations inspectors have repeatedly confirmed Tehran’s compliance with the deal.