A top European diplomat on Monday rejected the idea of new sanctions against Iran, despite U.S. efforts to increase pressure on the regime.
“We did not discuss that and we are not discussing introducing further restrictions on Iran,” Federica Mogherini, the European Union’s top foreign policy official, told reporters Monday.
That dismissal followed a meeting of diplomats from the union’s member countries as they discussed how to respond to President Trump’s notification to Congress that the Iran agreement is not in the interest of U.S. national security. Mogherini countered that the deal is “a key pillar” of efforts to prevent rogue regimes from developing nuclear weapons.
“We have lifted all the nuclear-related sanctions, as it is foreseen by the agreement,” she said. “The other [sides] have done the same and we will stick to that.”
Trump’s denunciation of the Iran deal set the table for his administration or Congress to impose the U.S. economic sanctions that President Barack Obama waived under the terms of the deal. That move would amount to an abrogation of the pact, despite the fact that international monitors believe that Iran is technically holding up its end of the bargain.
“We got weak inspections in exchange for no more than a purely short-term and temporary delay in Iran’s path to nuclear weapons,” Trump said Friday. “What is the purpose of a deal that, at best, only delays Iran’s nuclear capability for a short period of time?”
European allies who participated in the original talks over the deal maintain that the agreement rolled back the regime’s nuclear program and thus avoided a crisis.
“For us, it is a matter of security, it is a matter of keeping channels of engagement, dialogue and cooperation with Iran opened; from the economic cooperation to the cooperation we have in other sectors — following the [deal’s] implementation,” Mogherini said.
The EU’s opposition to new sanctions targeting Iranian aggression that was not covered by the deal might dampen the potential for the United States and European allies to coordinate a new pressure campaign against Iran. But the three most influential European leaders issued a more muted response to Trump’s speech on Friday.
“We stand ready to take further appropriate measures to address these issues in close cooperation with the U.S. and all relevant partners,” British Prime Minister Theresa May, French President Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in a joint statement. “We look to Iran to engage in constructive dialogue to stop de-stabilizing actions and work towards negotiated solutions.”
Trump’s team, and his allies in Congress, hope the president’s stated willingness to shred the pact and impose sanctions unilaterally will convince European allies to back the United States, however grudgingly.
“I fully expect that our allies and friends in Europe and in the region are going to be very supportive in efforts undertaken to deal with Iran’s threats,” Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Friday.
