On January 12, 2018, President Trump issued a statement announcing that he will approve certain sanctions waivers necessary in order to preserve the Iran nuclear deal. At the same time, he called on the U.S.’s European allies to work with the U.S. to fix the flaws of the Iran nuclear deal (the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action or the JCPOA), or he would terminate the deal.
President Trump began his statement by condemning the Iranian regime as the world’s leading state sponsor of terror. He also added 14 more Iranian individuals and entities to the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List.
In his statement, President Trump explained that he is open to working with Congress on bipartisan legislation dealing with Iran. However, any bill must include four critical components. First, the bill must allow immediate inspection by international inspectors at all nuclear sites. Second, it must demand that Iran not come close to possessing nuclear weapons. Third, there must be no expiration date on these requirements. Finally, the bill must subject Iran’s long-range missile program to the same sanctions imposed on its nuclear weapons program.
Although President Trump waived the application of certain nuclear sanctions, he stated that “this is a last chance.” He called on the U.S.’s European allies to fix the Iran deal and made it clear that if the allies cannot agree on a new supplemental JCPOA, President Trump will not waive sanctions again to stay in the deal. The President also reserved the right to withdraw from the deal immediately if he determines that an agreement is not within reach.
The President’s full statement can be found here.