Kuwait Follows Up Us Decision To Quit N Deal

Dismayed European allies sought to salvage the international nuclear pact with Iran on Wednesday after President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the landmark accord, while Tehran poured scorn on the US leader. “The deal is not dead. There’s an American withdrawal from the deal but the deal is still there,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said. Kuwait meanwhile, said it followed with great interest US President Trump’s announcement of withdrawing from Iran’s nuclear deal.

A Foreign Ministry source said in a statement that Kuwait had welcomed the agreement when it was announced in 2015, especially that it was endorsed by the UN Security Council’s Resolution 2231. At that time, Kuwait underlined the necessity of Iran’s honoring its full commitments in line with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Also, Kuwait then reiterated that the pact would contribute to boosting regional security and stability, despite realizing it did not fully respond to worries and concerns of countries in the region resulting from Iran’s negative conduct with these states.

Kuwait has always emphasized the necessity of no-interference in the internal affairs of other countries and respect to their sovereignty in line with international charters and norms, the source added. If the US proposed amendments to the agreement, that were not approved, prompting Washington to take a certain stance toward the pact, Kuwait understands and respects the US move, the source noted.

The foreign ministry stressed Kuwait’s unwavering stance calling for developing the Middle East into a zone free of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), at the time when everybody is seeking to achieve security and stability in the region that has suffered from unrest and wars for long.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who had been reluctant to back the deal, said: “Mr Trump, I tell you on behalf of the Iranian people: You’ve made a mistake…I said many times from the first day: don’t trust America.” French President Emmanuel Macron was due to speak later in the day to his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani, Le Drian said. Iran also signalled its willingness to talk.

Trump announced on Tuesday he would reimpose US economic sanctions on Iran to undermine what he called “a horrible, one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made”, which was “defective at its core”. The fruit of more than a decade of diplomacy, the agreement was concluded in 2015 by the United States, France, Britain, Germany, Russia, China and Iran. It was designed to prevent Iran obtaining a nuclear bomb in return for lifting sanctions that had crippled its economy.

Trump complained that the deal, the signature foreign policy achievement of his Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama, did not address Iran’s ballistic missile program, its nuclear activities beyond 2025 or its role in conflicts in Yemen and Syria. His decision raises the risk of deepening conflicts in the Middle East, puts the United States at odds with European diplomatic and business interests, and casts uncertainty over global oil supplies. Oil prices rose more than 2 percent, with Brent hitting a 3-1/2-year high.

The deal could also strengthen the hand of hardliners at the expense of reformers in Iran’s political scene. France’s Le Drian, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) all said Iran was honouring its commitments under the accord. “The region deserves better than further destabilisation provoked by American withdrawal,” Le Drian said. The European Union said it would remain committed to the deal and would ensure sanctions on Iran remain lifted, as long as Tehran meets its commitments.

The Kremlin said Russian President Vladimir Putin was “deeply concerned” by the withdrawal, the RIA news agency said Merkel said that, while the existing deal should not be called into question, there should be discussion of “a broader deal that goes beyond it”. British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson spoke of a “follow-on agreement” but said it was now up to Washington to come up with concrete proposals. Macron’s contact with Rouhani will be followed by meetings next week involving the Iranians and European counterparts from France, Britain and Germany.

But Iran’s Khamenei appeared sceptical, saying: “I don’t trust these three countries.” The prospects of saving the deal without Washington depends in large part on whether international companies are willing and able still to do business with Iran despite the US sanctions. Le Drian said meetings would be held with major firms including oil giant Total. In a harbinger of what could be in store, Trump’s new ambassador to Germany said German businesses should halt their activities in Iran immediately. French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said the United States should not consider itself the world’s “economic policeman”.

Britain and France said they would do their utmost to protect their business interests in Iran, while Germany said it was seeking details of the effect of US sanctions. European companies including carmaker PSA, plane manufacturer Airbus and engineering group Siemens said they were watching the situation. In a speech carried on his official website, Khamenei said Trump’s announcement had been “silly and superficial”, adding: “He had maybe more than 10 lies in his comments.”

Lawmakers in Iran’s parliament burned a US flag and a symbolic copy of the deal, known officially as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), chanting “Death to America!”. President Hassan Rouhani, a reformist who had hoped that the deal would boost living standards in Iran, struck a more pragmatic tone in a televised speech, saying Iran would negotiate with European Union countries, China and Russia. “If at the end of this short period we conclude that we can fully benefit from the JCPOA with the cooperation of all countries, the deal will remain,” he said

 

SOURCE : ARABTIMES

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