America’s European allies swiftly assailed Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from a nuclear arms control agreement with Iran.
Moments after Mr Trump said he would abandon the pact, resisting overtures from European nations who had urged him to preserve America’s commitment, French President Emmanuel Macron released a statement saying France, Germany and the UK “regret” the move.
“The nuclear non-proliferation regime is at stake”, Mr Macron said.
Mr Macron had used a recent White House visit to try and persuade Mr Trump to abide by the agreement. But he acknowledged at the time that the president was unlikely to change his view of the agreement as a bad deal that rewarded an Iranian that continues to sponsor proxies across the Middle East.
Noting that withdrawing from the deal was a “a campaign pledge he made long ago”, Mr Macron told reporters last week that Mr Trump had “no serious desire to maintain or defend” the deal. He separately noted that the president was poised to withdraw “for his own domestic reasons.”
“Rational analysis does not lead me to think he will stay in the deal”, Mr Macron told reporters.
Other European leaders sought to project a unified front in favour of preserving the pact. European Council president Donald Tusk said Mr Trump’s policies on Iran and trade “will meet a united European approach”.
Federica Mogherini, the European Union’s top diplomat, said she believed the deal was successfully deterring Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons and predicted that the rest of the international community would stand by the pact.
“The European Union is determined to act in accordance with its security interests and to protect its economic investments, Ms Mogherini said. “The nuclear deal with Iran is the culmination of 12 years of diplomacy. It belongs to the entire international community”.
Addressing Iran, Ms Mogherini urged its citizens and leaders to “not let anyone dismantle this agreement”.
