More than 500 parliamentarians from the UK, France, and Germany published an open letter on Thursday calling on the US congress do all it can to keep the 2015 Iran nuclear deal alive and "protect the fruits of successful diplomacy."
"Together, Europeans and Americans have proved that a strong and united transatlantic partnership can bring about a coalition extending to Russia and China, endorsed by the international community," the lawmakers wrote. "But this coalition is now at risk, as the US government moves towards abandoning the [nuclear deal] without any evidence of Iran not fulfilling its obligations," Common Dreams reported.
"Abandoning the deal would diminish the value of any promises or threats made by our countries. It would also diminish our capability to keep Iran nuclear-free after the expiration of the special provisions of the JCPOA," the letter reads. "If we maintain our alliance now, we will be in the position to keep Iran's nuclear aspirations in check in the long run."
The letter continues, "But let us be clear: if the deal breaks down, it will well-nigh be impossible to assemble another grand coalition built around sanctions against Iran. We must preserve what took us a decade to achieve and has proven to be effective."
The 2015 agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, was the crowning achievement of 20 months of grueling negotiations involving the US, France, Germany, Britain, Russia, China and Iran. It guarantees that Iran's nuclear program will remain peaceful in exchange for lifting US and EU nuclear-related sanctions that have crippled Iran's economy.
Iran says its nuclear program is only for peaceful purposes.
The International Atomic Energy Agency was charged with verifying that Iran adheres to the agreement with regular inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities.
The UN watchdog has repeatedly confirmed that Iran has kept its part of the deal.
While the administration of former US president Barack Obama had lauded the deal as a triumph of diplomacy, his successor Donald Trump has dismissed it as a "major embarrassment" for the US.
In January, he warned Britain, France and Germany that they must "fix the terrible flaws of the Iran nuclear deal" by May 12 or he would refuse to honor the sanctions relief promised in the agreement, threatening to terminate the JCPOA entirely.
Versions of the open letter was simultaneously released to the New York Times, Der Spiegel, Le Monde and the Guardian. The letter was timed to publish before the May deadline imposed by Trump. It also adds pressure on the White House just days before it is set to welcome French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel next week.
