Trump Takes US Out Of Iran Nuclear Deal

World assesses the repercussions from US withdrawal of JCPOA and renewed sanctions on Iran

- Margaret Talev and Toluse Olorunnipa

President Donald Trump said on May 8 the U.S. will withdraw from the landmark 2015 accord to curb Iran’s nuclear program and reinstate financial sanctions on the Islamic Republic, opening an uncertain new chapter for the Middle East.

His decision, widely anticipated by allies and analysts, was intended to force Iran to renegotiate an agreement the country’s leaders have said they will not revisit. Trump’s political opponents warned he could lead the U.S. into another Middle East war.

“The fact is this was a horrible one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made,” Trump said. “We cannot prevent an Iranian nuclear bomb under the decaying and rotten structure of the current agreement. The Iran deal is defective at its core.”

The exit throws plans for billions of dollars of investments by European companies into disarray. Oil rebounded to trade at the highest level since 2014 as investors focused on how Iranian crude buyers will react to sanctions aimed at cutting exports from OPEC’s third-largest producer. Brent for July settlement climbed as much as 2.5 percent to $76.75 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange following the announcement. The global benchmark crude traded at a $6.14 premium to July WTI.

German industry called for the European Union to shield investments.

“The German government and the EU now need to protect Iran business and restore lost trust,” the DIHK trade and industry lobby said in a statement. “Companies are worried that they could lose U.S. business as a result of their trade with Iran.”

Juergen Hardt, senior foreign affairs lawmaker for German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party bloc, told the Phoenix broadcaster that Trump’s move was “highly risky” and “frivolous.”