Iran’s leaders warned President Donald Trump he would regret pulling out of the nuclear deal with Tehran, and vowed a strong response if the U.S. withdrew, Newsweek reported, citing Reuters.
The threat was made as John Bolton, who is well known for his hawkish stance on U.S. foreign policy, particularly toward Iran, began his tenure as Trump’s national security adviser. Tehran’s message was no doubt intended to show that Iran would not be intimidated by the new White House national security team.
A raft of crippling U.S. sanctions against Iran was lifted as part of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which imposed restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program. The deal allows the U.S. to waive these sanctions every 120 days as long as it believes Iran is adhering to the terms of the agreement. The next deadline is May 12, but Trump has continually threatened to withdraw from the deal and reimplement sanctions unless what he calls “terrible flaws” in the agreement are fixed.
“The new U.S. president—who has big claims and many ups and downs in his words and actions—has been trying for 15 months to break the JCPOA,” Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said in a Monday speech broadcast live on television. “But the structure of the JCPOA is so strong that it has not been shaken by such quakes.”
“Iran will not violate the nuclear deal, but if the United States withdraws from the deal, they will surely regret it,” Rouhani continued. “Our response will be stronger than what they imagine and they would see that within a week.”
Rouhani delivered the speech as part of Iran’s National Nuclear Technology Day, during which nuclear achievements such as a nuclear battery and centrifuges for the oil industry were unveiled.
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