Benjamin Netanyahu Considers the Possibility of Donald Trump Canceling the JCPOA as 'Serious'

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel, has deemed the possibility of Donald Trump, the President of the United States, canceling the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) as 'a real possibility' on Friday, January 12. According to Israeli media, Netanyahu made this assessment during a conversation on Tuesday, January 10, with ambassadors from NATO member countries in Israel; he stated, 'European leaders must take President Trump's warning about the cancellation of the JCPOA seriously.' Israel considers itself a close friend and ally of the United States, but Netanyahu did not clarify whether he was informed by the U.S. about the 'real' possibility of the JCPOA's cancellation before the global community. The news website of Channel 14 of Israeli television reported that Netanyahu had sent a similar message regarding the 'real possibility of the U.S. canceling the JCPOA' to the leaders of Germany, Britain, and France in recent days. Israeli media previously reported that Netanyahu had a phone conversation last week with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister Theresa May regarding Iran; however, there was no mention of his conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron. The U.S. State Department announced that Donald Trump will announce his decision regarding the JCPOA on Friday, January 12, after meeting with Rex Tillerson and James Mattis, the U.S. Secretaries of State and Defense. Trump has consistently described the JCPOA as 'the worst deal he has ever seen' and emphasizes that the money received by the Iranian government after the JCPOA has been spent on 'the regime's adventures in the region' and 'terrorism worldwide.' Before Trump's presidency, Netanyahu was a staunch critic of the nuclear negotiations between the then U.S. government and global powers with Iran, and after the JCPOA was reached, he called it 'a historic mistake.' However, in the last months of Barack Obama's presidency, he reduced his criticism and emphasized that Iran should be monitored for its strict adherence to the JCPOA. With Trump's ascension to power, Netanyahu resumed his open criticism of the JCPOA, and three months ago, when the U.S. President refrained from certifying Iran's compliance with the JCPOA, Netanyahu immediately praised this decision. Trump must also announce on Friday what decision he will make regarding the continuation of congressional sanctions against Iran; in the absence of a specific congressional decision in this regard, the 90-day deadline available to the Washington government and Congress will expire. According to Channel 14 of Israeli television, Netanyahu's government has 'expected' that discussions between the U.S. and the European signatories of the JCPOA with Iran aimed at addressing the 'weak points' of the nuclear agreement would begin over the past three months, but no such discussions have taken place. The European countries involved in the JCPOA have told the U.S. and Israel that they are strongly opposed to the cancellation of the JCPOA and believe that 'Iran's full compliance with its commitments under the JCPOA, which has been confirmed in numerous reports by the International Atomic Energy Agency, makes the continuation of the JCPOA essential for global peace and stability.' The foreign ministers of Germany, Britain, and France, along with Federica Mogherini, the head of the EU's foreign policy, will meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Brussels on Thursday, January 11. According to Channel 14 of Israeli television, the most important part of the meeting in Brussels will be the readiness of both sides in anticipation of a possible U.S. action to cancel the JCPOA. In recent days, Iran has emphasized that it is prepared for the U.S. exit from the JCPOA and has considered the 'worst-case scenarios'; Abbas Araghchi, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, stated on Monday in Tehran that 'the international community must be prepared for the stage of the U.S. exit from the JCPOA.' Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesperson for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, also stated that Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of this organization, told Yukiya Amano, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, in a phone call on Monday: 'If the commitments of the JCPOA are not fulfilled by the U.S., the Islamic Republic of Iran will make decisions that could affect the current cooperation between Iran and the Agency.' The possible U.S. action to cancel the JCPOA, from the perspective of the Washington government, coincides with recent anti-government protests in Iran; the U.S. government and Donald Trump, as well as the Israeli Prime Minister, have unprecedentedly and powerfully supported the opponents of the regime in Iranian cities.