Call for Preserving Global Consensus on Nuclear Deal

Iran should help preserve the prevailing global consensus in support of its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers after the slanderous speech delivered by US President Donald Trump intended to torpedo the historic agreement, a political analyst said.

"The support that the deal is receiving with the world standing up to Trump is something that needs to be preserved," Ali Khorram, a former Iranian diplomat, also told ISNA.

In a speech last week, Trump said the deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, is no longer in the national security interest of the United States.

It is a significant declaration that leaves the nuclear agreement in place, but puts the US Congress in charge of whether or not to reimpose sanctions against Iran in a 60-day window.

World leaders were quick to react to Trump's decision to "decertify" the deal between Iran, the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and the European Union, which saw Tehran curtail its nuclear program in exchange for the easing of economic sanctions.

"We encourage the US administration and congress to consider the implications to the security of the US and its allies before taking any steps that might undermine the JCPOA, such as reimposing sanctions on Iran lifted under the agreement," French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister Theresa May said in a joint statement after Trump's speech.

In Brussels, Federica Mogherini, the EU foreign policy chief, said the Iran deal is an international agreement and "it is not up to any single country to terminate it."

In response to Trump's combative remarks, the Russian Foreign Ministry said there was no place in international diplomacy for "threatening" and "aggressive" rhetoric, adding that such methods were doomed.

  Still Alive

Pointing to the reactions by the world leaders, Khorram said their stances demonstrate that the deal "is still alive", saying that Trump's rhetoric carries little weight among the US elite.

Asked about what approach would be the best in the face of Trump's decertification, the political analyst said, "Iran should refrain from any action that might be seen by the US or the other parties to the deal as a violation of the deal."

He added that Iran should highlight the US president's mistakes and try to refute them in a rational way, similar to the approach adopted by President Hassan Rouhani in his response to Trump's charges.

Rouhani said Trump's speech was full of "baseless accusations", stressing that Iran is committed to all international accords. He added that Trump's decision to decertify the deal would isolate the United States, as other signatories to the accord remain committed to it.

Khorram underscored the "rationality" and "calmness" in Rouhani's reaction as being diametrically opposed to Trump's stance, saying that Iran should avoid falling into rhetoric-laden slanging matches with Trump.

"After all, the world is looking at Iran as a rational player," he concluded.