Trump Will Decertify The Iran Deal, Punt The Issue To Congress

Trump Will ‘Decertify’ The Iran Deal, Punt The Issue To Congress
The President will ask lawmakers to change U.S. commitments under the nuclear agreement — a move that could blow the whole thing up.
By Jessica Schulberg 10/13/2017 05:00 am ET Updated 6 minutes ago

WASHINGTON ― President Donald Trump will announce on Friday afternoon that he is decertifying the Iran nuclear agreement while simultaneously urging Congress not to kill the deal. Instead, he’ll call on Congress to revise a related law to alter U.S. commitments under the international agreement ― a move that could itself kill the accord.

Trump’s plan follows a lengthy interagency review and months of speculation about whether he would scrap the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which imposed restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson previewed the president’s announcement for reporters ahead of Trump’s speech.

Although Trump has repeatedly trashed the Iran nuclear deal, he has faced massive resistance to pulling out of or taking steps that could kill the agreement. The International Atomic Energy Agency, tasked with monitoring the use of nuclear energy, has continued to verify Iranian compliance with its commitments under agreement. The U.S. intelligence community found no evidence to challenge those findings, and State Department officials have overwhelmingly advocated remaining party to the deal.

Secretary of Defense James Mattis testified earlier this month that abiding by the agreement is consistent with U.S. national security interests. And U.S. allies in Europe who helped negotiate the agreement have made clear that they are not interested in re-litigating its terms.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-iran-deal-certification-congress_us_59d7bf3ce4b046f5ad9804ce?ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009