Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) released the following statement after President Donald J. Trump announced that he is withdrawing the United States from the Iran Nuclear Deal.
“President Trump’s reckless actions today ignore the advice of Defense Secretary Mattis and his military leaders. Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal and re-impose sanctions against Iran destroys America’s credibility, strengthens Iran and it’s most dangerous leaders, and fails to provide Americans with any clear plan on how this Administration will counter Iran’s support for terrorism or its ballistic missile and nuclear programs.”
“We are facing an extremely volatile period in the Middle East with Iran continuing to work to undermine its neighbors and threaten Israel. That’s why my colleagues and I passed legislation last year requiring the Administration to submit a plan to Congress for its Iran policy. Congress is still waiting for their response. If the President truly wanted to ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon, he would have stayed in the agreement and negotiated follow-on agreements that improved inspections, instituted safeguards to address concerns with sunset provisions in the agreement, and worked to stop Iran’s support of terrorism in the Middle East. The President’s withdrawal from this agreement without a strategy is a dereliction of duty. I will continue to press this Administration for its strategy to counter the threats we face from Iran.”
BACKGROUND
Under National Security Presidential Memorandum 11, President Trump took the following actions today:
- The President directed the Secretary of State to take all necessary steps to “cease participation” by the United States in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA);
- The President directed the Secretaries of State and Treasury to immediately begin taking steps to re-impose all U.S. sanctions lifted or waived under the JCPOA, with sanctions being fully imposed no later than 180 days from now;
- The President directed the Secretary of Defense to prepare to respond to any “Iranian aggression”, including Iranian attempts to develop a nuclear weapon;
- The President directed all agencies to identify ways to continue to monitor Iran’s nuclear program.
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