Iran threatens to shirk nuclear deal

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday threatened to partially withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal one year after President Donald Trump pulled out of the agreement. In a letter to other signatories of the deal, Iran said it would resume storing excess uranium and heavy water from its nuclear program if a new deal is not reached in 60 days.

“If the five countries join negotiations and help Iran to reach its benefits in the field of oil and banking, Iran will return to its commitments according to the nuclear deal,” Rouhani said. Britain, China, France, Germany, and Russia originally signed the deal with Iran and the United States.

Under the 2015 pact, Iran enjoyed lifted sanctions in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program. The agreement allowed Iran to retain no more than 660 pounds of low-enriched uranium, compared to its initial stockpile of 22,046 pounds.

The United States pulled out of the agreement in May 2018 and imposed further sanctions on Iran. Last month, the Trump administration declared the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, a domestic paramilitary force, a terror group and ended waivers for nations that buy Iran’s crude oil.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday made an unannounced trip to Iraq after the United States deployed an aircraft carrier and a bomber task force to the Middle East to respond to threats from Iran. Pompeo said he emphasized the need for Iraq to protect Americans in the country. “We wanted to let them know about the increased threat stream that we had seen and give them a little bit more background on that so they could ensure that they were doing all they could to provide protection for our team,” he said.