The Trump administration plans to reimpose sanctions on Iran Monday that had previously been suspended under the 2015 Iran nuclear accord. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the aim is to dissuade Iran from supporting brutal regimes and backing groups like Hezbollah and Hamas. But naturally, the administration appears to have no actual plan for making that happen. The New York Times writes:
The new sanctions bar any transactions with Iran involving dollar bank notes, gold, precious metals, aluminum, steel, commercial passenger aircraft and coal, and they end imports into the United States of Iranian carpets and food stuffs.
The problems with the U.S. abandoning a pact it played a key role in negotiating alongside European allies are numerous. First, our European allies, including Britain, France, and Germany, view the deal as critical to their national security interests. Second, it could undercut the ability of global alliances to get certain nations to the negotiating table in the future if the U.S. might simply change course later anyway.
Third, the possibility remains that the Trump administration will further erode our international alliances based on the fact that our European partners plan to continue adhering to the deal and doing business with Iran under the terms of the original agreement. And that prospect is already laying the groundwork for the U.S. managing to unilaterally kill the deal altogether. The Washington Post writes:
As U.S. officials warn of robust enforcement, many foreign businesses already have started to close shop in Iran.
More tension is likely on Nov. 4, when other U.S. sanctions will be reimposed that prohibit oil purchases from Iran, which form the backbone of its economy. That could nudge Iran into withdrawing from the deal, too.
Alternatively, if other countries find ways to maintain the accord without U.S. cooperation, the standing of the U.S. will be completely diminished on the world stage.