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/THREAD/ Tehran’s retaliation against the Trump administration’s violations of the landmark 2015 nuclear deal is making the costs and dangers of Trump’s disastrous Iran policy clear for all to see. 1/
The #IranDeal closed off Iran’s paths to a nuclear weapon. Now, a year after Trump pulled out, Iran is acting on its warnings that it cannot uphold the agreement unilaterally. As such, Trump has initiated a chain reaction that will make America and the world less safe. 2/
It is not surprising that Iran has taken this step. It is surprising that it's taken Iran so long to take this step. Trump had created a bizarre situation in which Iran was more sanctioned for abiding by a nuclear agreement than it was when the US accused it of violating one. 3/
Though Trump is the cause of the Iranian decision, he is not the target of it. Europe is. The EU has had more than a year to ensure Iran receives the benefits it was promised. Despite strong political signals, the EU has failed to translate this into concrete economic measures.4/
Europe seems to have calculated that Iran had no choice but to remain in the nuclear deal despite not receiving any of its benefits. Had Europe acted earlier, faster and with greater sincerity, this day could have been avoided.5/
Tehran has now demonstrated through tangible steps that its adherence to the JCPOA cannot be taken for granted - even though an Iranian exit from the deal will be very costly to Tehran.6/
But Iran’s strategy is clearly not designed to facilitate an exit from the nuclear deal, but to compel Europe to defend the deal by living up to its obligations. 7/
The EU is in a difficult spot. If it fulfills its obligations under the #IranDeal, it'll face costly tensions with the US. If it squirts its obligations and bows to Trump, it'll face the risk of Bolton starting a war with Iran - with devastating repercussions for Europe. 8/
It is a decision point Europe understandably had hoped to avoid. Now, it no longer can escape it. /
