Associated Press: The US Seeks to Increase Inspections of Iran's Military Facilities

The Associated Press reported, citing American officials, that the Trump administration intends to assess the strength of the JCPOA by increasing inspections of Iran's suspicious military facilities. The President of the United States is trying in various ways to find a way to cancel this agreement. According to the Associated Press, these inspections are one of the strategies considered to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. The Trump administration, in addition to stricter oversight of the implementation of this agreement, seeks to amend parts of the agreement that, according to Trump's advisors, have 'serious flaws,' and if these flaws are not addressed, it is likely that Trump will cancel the agreement. According to American officials who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, another part of the US government's actions involves negotiating with European powers to ensure that Iran's nuclear activities do not expand after the agreement expires in ten years. The request for these inspections, which Iran is likely to oppose, would benefit Trump, who has always favored canceling this agreement. Based on the reasoning of American officials, if Iran opposes these stricter inspections, Trump will eventually be able to claim that Iran has violated the JCPOA and hold that country responsible for the cancellation of the agreement. If Iran accepts these inspections, it would strengthen the position of those in the US government who support maintaining the JCPOA, allowing them to argue that US national security is better ensured. Disagreement among US officials regarding how to deal with the JCPOA peaked this month, coinciding with the 90-day deadlines and periodic reviews of Iran's performance. Despite the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which monitors Iran's compliance, stating that Iran's violations have been minimal, Trump was determined to label Iran as a violator of the agreement. Trump reluctantly agreed to delay the option of confrontation with Iran for another three months at the request of senior cabinet members, provided that US pressure on Iran increases. The Associated Press adds that another 90-day deadline for confirming the JCPOA will arrive in three months, and it remains unclear whether the plan to increase inspections of Iran's military facilities or any other form of 'revision' to the nuclear agreement can guarantee Trump's commitment to this agreement. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal this month, Trump stated that he is likely to conclude that Iran is not complying with all the JCPOA requirements. He said, 'If it were up to me, I would have decided 180 days ago that Iran is not complying with the agreement.' In such circumstances, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and other senior US officials will find it difficult to convince Trump. In this context, the US government intends to pressure Iran to accept inspections of those military facilities that the US believes may violate the nuclear agreement. Inspections of Iran's military sites were the most contentious issue in the 2015 nuclear agreement. Last week, Thomas Shannon, the US Deputy Secretary of State, shared this plan with officials from European countries that are part of the oversight committee of the nuclear agreement. For the US to impose more inspections on Iran, it must first gain the support of the IAEA and the majority vote of the other five world powers that are parties to the agreement with Iran. For this reason, the US is trying to convince them by providing new evidence of Iran's illegal activities. American officials who provided this information to the Associated Press did not specify how this information was collected by US security agencies or the military facilities in question in Iran.