Trump Calls for New Iran Deal
Following the assassination of Iran's Supreme Leader, President Trump declared that securing a new diplomatic agreement with Iran will now be "easy." He coupled this offer to negotiate with a stark warning, stating any "devastating" Iranian retaliation would be met with force "never seen before."
The previous Iran nuclear deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was finalized in 2015 between Iran and the P5+1 group of world powers: the United States, United Kingdom, France, China, Russia, and Germany. Under its terms, Iran agreed to dismantle large parts of its nuclear program and allow for extensive international inspections in exchange for the lifting of crippling economic sanctions. President Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States from the JCPOA in May 2018, calling it a "horrible, one-sided deal." The administration argued the agreement failed to address Iran's ballistic missile program and its support for regional militant groups. Key U.S. allies in the region, including Israel and Saudi Arabia, also strongly opposed the original deal and supported the withdrawal. Following the U.S. withdrawal, the Trump administration implemented a "maximum pressure" campaign, re-imposing sanctions on critical sectors of Iran's economy, including its energy and financial industries. This led to a severe economic downturn in Iran, with its GDP contracting, inflation soaring, and the value of its currency, the rial, plummeting. In response to the U.S. sanctions and the inability of other signatories to fully deliver the promised economic benefits, Iran began to gradually exceed the nuclear limits set by the JCPOA. This included enriching uranium to higher levels and accumulating a larger stockpile than the agreement permitted, while still maintaining that its nuclear program was for peaceful purposes.
