US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and resume sanctions against the Islamic Republicans is wrong, says an American analyst.
The US Treasury Department announced on Friday that all sanctions on Iran lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), would be back in force on November 5.
According to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, the sweeping sanctions will see 700 people blacklisted, including people who were granted relief under the JCPOA, as well as over 300 new names.
Philip Giraldi, a former CIA officer, said the decision to re-impose sanctions and ignore the JCPOA was going to have consequences.
“Certainly the sanctioning of Iran is completely wrong” because Iran is still bound by the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and six powers – the US, the UK, France, China, Russia and Germany—despite Trump’s claims, Giraldi told Press TV on Sunday.
“So this is a really bad move by the United States, it takes away an agreement that was a good agreement and replaces it with nothing… with something that is very bad and could easily lead to war,” the analyst said.
Trump announced in May that he was quitting the JCPOA because of what he claimed was Iran’s constant violations.
The first round of the bans – which had been lifted under the nuclear deal -- was re-imposed in August. The US plans to impose a second round of sanctions against Iran on Monday.
Iran has vowed resistance in the face of Washington’s economic pressure. It is now in talks with the other five signatories to the deal to help keep the international document alive and blunt the impact of the returning US bans.
The widespread opposition against Washington and the market’s reliance on Iran’s oil has prompted the White House to issue waivers for Tehran’s main oil buyers.