United Kingdom joins diplomatic fight to save Iran nuclear deal

‘What we want for the deal is that it’s preserved and guaranteed by the non-Americans, ‘ Rouhani added, ‘Then the USA pullout will be okay’. While refusing to reveal what he’ll do by May 12, he repeated his belief the existing deal is “a awful agreement for the United States”.

Although Iran complied with the deal and reduced its development of nuclear weapons, Trump argues the deal does not restrict certain activities like ballistic missiles tests which Iran continues to carry out.

Mr Trump has strongly criticised the agreement, which he calls “insane”. Last October, he officially disavowed the deal, though he stopped short of terminating it. What happens next if the USA pulls out?

In exchange, Iran received relief from sanctions, most of which were lifted in January 2016.

Britain has appealed to US President Donald Trump not to abandon the Iran nuclear deal as a key deadline approaches, saying that while it is not ideal there is no better alternative.

On Thursday Ali Akbar Velayati, the foreign policy adviser to Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned Tehran would quit the nuclear deal if the U.S. withdraws.

Over the weekend both sides made their final pitches on the Iran deal, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying the agreement is fatally flawed, while Iranian President Hassan Rouhani warned that the USA would face “historic” regret if it pulled out of the 2015 accord.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that the 2015 accord is fatally flawed and must be “fully fixed or nixed” to stop Iranian aggression sooner than later.

“As I say plan B does not seem to be to me particularly well-developed at this stage”. As per the agreement, Iran promised to end its nuclear program. Without that, Iran would be freed immediately from the deal’s restraints – in effect changing the deal’s sunset provisions from 10-15 years to zero – and the Europeans would likely be unwilling to join in pressuring Iran on other issues.

Like Trump, Netanyahu is an ardent opponent of the deal.

The constant fluctuation in oil prices is destabilizing for future investment and security of supply, Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said.

To Iran, European diplomats offered a choice between two futures: one in which Iran would freeze its nuclear program and end its worldwide isolation; and one in which it would maintain its program and face ever-harsher sanctions, and possibly war.

In a call with Theresa May on Saturday, Mr Trump “underscored his commitment to ensure that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon”. Tehran will walk away from the agreement if Washington does, regardless of any effort by European signatories to preserve it, Iranian officials have also said.

On Sunday, Darroch said that Britain has some ideas for addressing Trump’s concerns. But scuttling the deal, he said, would take pressure off Iran by dividing Washington from its allies.

It’s not clear exactly what those fixes will look like.

“I thought it was a bad deal”, he said. It’s unclear whether Iran would agree to those terms.

“We’re not going to have flawless clarity under any circumstances on May 13”, said Suzanne Maloney, deputy director of the foreign policy program at the Brookings Institution.

“This time, we don’t think it will be anywhere near as successful as it was in 2012”, said Edward Morse, global head of commodities research at Citi. “Or we work with what we’ve got and push back”.

Despite this, Nephew is in the camp that sees Iranian exports falling by fewer than 500,000 barrels a day.