Europe prepares package of measures to keep Iran's nuclear deal

Young journalists club

News ID: 14049
Iran » Iran
Publish Date: 11:26 - 12 October 2017
TEHRAN, October 12 - European countries are scrambling to cobble together a package of measures they hope will keep the Iran nuclear deal on track if U.S. President Donald Trump ignores their pleas and decertifies the 2015 agreement this week.

Europe prepares package of measures to keep nuclear dealTEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) - The package would include a strong statement backing the deal by European powers, together with efforts to lobby the U.S. Congress, officials said.

But without strong U.S. support for the deal, senior officials in Berlin, Paris and London say it may be only a matter of time before the pact between Tehran and six world powers unravels, with grave consequences for Middle East security, nonproliferation efforts and transatlantic ties.

The two-year-old agreement is viewed in Europe as a rare triumph of international diplomacy in the Middle East.

European capitals have been delivering this message to the White House and Congress in one of the most intense lobbying campaigns in recent memory. In the past weeks, European ambassadors have met dozens of U.S. lawmakers. And on Tuesday, British Prime Minister Theresa May lobbied Trump by phone, Reuters reported.

“If the feeling is the United States no longer supports the agreement then the political reality is that the deal will be in serious jeopardy and its implementation will be very difficult,” a senior French diplomat told Reuters.

A decision by Trump to decertify would not automatically kill the agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The expectation is that Trump would kick the ball to Congress, which would then have 60 days to decide whether to reimpose sanctions lifted as part of the JCPOA.

Iranian officials have vowed that they would make the appropriate decision in case the US decides to violate the nuclear deal.

 

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