In July, President Donald Trump reluctantly renewed the Iran nuclear deal and its accompanying sanctions relief program — thereby reneging on one of his more ardent campaign promises. Yet the diplomatic pressures that ultimately forced Trump’s hand didn’t prevent his administration from sticking to new penalties it imposed in April after Iran fired ballistic missiles in violation of the original deal. What’s more, more sanctions have been touted in public, causing Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to tout back while addressing parliament during a live broadcast on state television.
According to Reuters, Rouhani threatened to leave the nuclear deal outright should new sanctions be imposed. “If America wants to go back to the experience (of imposing sanctions), Iran would certainly return in a short time — not a week or a month but within hours — to conditions more advanced than before the start of negotiations,” he said. The Iranian president’s latest comments were especially primed for remarks Trump gave during his “working” vacation in Bedminster, New Jersey. “I don’t think Iran is in compliance,” he told reporters last week. “I don’t they’re living up to the spirit of the agreement.”
Needless to say, Rouhani was evidently not pleased with Trump’s latest international jabs. Hence why Iran’s leader went for the jugular and insulted his American counterpart’s most prized attribute — his ability to negotiate. “The world has clearly seen that under Trump, America has ignored international agreements and, in addition to undermining the (nuclear deal), has broken its word on the Paris agreement and the Cuba accord,” he sniped. “[T]he United States is not a good partner or a reliable negotiator.”
Considering the quickness with which Trump lashed out at Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier’s decision to leave the president’s advisory council on manufacturing following his delayed Charlottesville response, Rouhani’s jab is sure to spark similar ire.
(Via Reuters)