US Flagrantly Breached Iran Nuclear Deal
by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org – Home – Stephen Lendman)
Unilateral US sanctions on Iran are illegal – including those imposed by Congress, the Obama and Trump administrations after the nuclear deal was agreed on – adopted on October 18, 2015, implemented on January 16, 2016.
America can never be trusted. The JCPOA nuclear deal is an international treaty, Washington a signatory. Breaching it is an international crime, the US a serial offender.
In December 2016, Congress near-unanimously renewed the Iran Sanctions Act, effective through 2026. At the time, an unnamed senior Obama administration official lied, saying “we do not believe (an extension) violat(es) the nuclear agreement with Iran…”
Tehran justifiably called it a flagrant breach. The same holds for unilaterally imposed congressional and administration sanctions – after the JCPOA’s implementation by the Obama and Trump administrations.
More congressional and Treasury sanctions are likely following Trump’s nuclear deal decertification, aiming to undermine it altogether, despite world community support – America, Israel and Saudi Arabia pariah states against the deal.
On October 13, the US Treasury Department imposed illegal sanctions on Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC), falsely accusing it of supporting terrorist groups.
It named Hezbollah (part of Lebanon’s government), Hamas (Palestine’s democratically elected government), and the Taliban, considered freedom fighters in the 1980s against Soviet Russia, called mujahideen at the time.
The US Treasury Department stopped short of calling the IRGC a foreign terrorist organization – perhaps coming next by the State Department. It’s a legitimate Iranian defense force, fundamentally against US-supported terrorists.
Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov slammed Washington, saying:
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has committed to its obligations under the JCPOA fully and in a most responsible manner, so far and hopefully in the future.”
The Trump administration “violated not only the spirit, but also the letter” of the deal, including his deplorable decertification, adding:
US actions “could de-facto paralyze the JCPOA or completely wipe it out in the worst case scenario.”
“We are going to explain again and again to (Washington the) unacceptability and shallowness of (its) approach.”
US claims about Iranian violations are spurious, including about its legitimate ballistic missile program.
“There is no direct link between the (peaceful) nuclear and ballistic program of Iran,” said Ryabkov – other than prohibiting the development of ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads.
Iran’s nuclear program is entirely peaceful with no military component it abhors – well known to the world community. Washington and Israel pretend otherwise, both countries nuclear armed and dangerous.
Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei’s top military advisor General Yahya Rahim Safavi said Iran’s legitimate missile program and national interests aren’t up for negotiations with Washington or anyone else.
Trump’s remarks and actions show he “lack(s) a strategic perception” on global issues, Safavi said. He called for vigilance against “plots by the US and their agents, including the Zionists.”
On Wednesday, Iranian Ayatollah Khamenei blasted Washington as an “agent of international Zionism…the creator of Daesh (ISIS)” and other regional terrorist groups.
It’s “furious because the Islamic Republic has managed to thwart (its regional) plots.” He denounced Trump’s latest insults, saying it’s “a waste of time to respond to such blatherings and nonsensical remarks” – calling him a “foulmouthed US president.”
Separately, Iran’s Chiefs of Staff chairman General Mohammad Baqeri blasted Israel, saying it’s “not acceptable for the Zionist regime to violate Syria via land or air whenever it pleases.”
Unlike America and Tel Aviv, Iran respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other countries, Baqeri stressed.
On Wednesday, he and Syrian General Ali Abdullah Ayyoub held a joint press conference, affirming their commitment to continue combating foreign supported terrorism until it’s eliminated.
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