WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump says the United States is withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal, which he is calling “defective at its core.”
Trump on Tuesday signed a presidential memorandum withdrawing from the 2015 agreement and he is planning to reinstall sanctions on the Iranian regime. He says in an address to the nation that he will be reinstituting the highest level of sanctions and warning any country not to help the Iranian government.
Trump says America “will not be held hostage to nuclear blackmail” and will not allow “a regime that chants `Death to America”‘ to get access to nuclear weapons.
The president says he made the decision after consulting with U.S. allies.
The European Union foreign policy chief says the Iran nuclear agreement is a pillar of international security and she is calling on its signatories to continue to respect it.
The comments by Federica Mogherini came shortly after President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he was withdrawing the U.S. from the pact. Mogherini says, “The nuclear deal with Iran is crucial for the security of the region, of Europe and of the entire world.”
Iran’s president is saying there’s a “short time” to negotiate with the countries remaining in the nuclear deal, warning his country could start enriching uranium more than ever in the coming weeks.
President Hassan Rouhani (hah-SAHN’ roh-HAH’-nee) made the statement Tuesday immediately after President Donald Trump said he was pulling the U.S. out of the nuclear deal.
Rouhani spoke live on Iranian state television. He says he will be sending Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to countries remaining in the accord.
Israel’s prime minister is praising President Donald Trump for withdrawing the U.S. from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
Benjamin Netanyahu called Trump’s decision Tuesday a “historic move.” He says leaving the Iran deal unchanged would be “a recipe for disaster, a disaster for our region, a disaster for the peace of the world.”
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