China Once Again Calls for 'Preservation' of Nuclear Agreement with Iran

Just hours before the announcement of the new U.S. strategy regarding Iran and the JCPOA, the Chinese government on Friday urged Donald Trump to maintain his country's commitment to the nuclear agreement with the Islamic Republic. The U.S. President is set to announce the new strategy of the United States regarding Iran on Friday morning, October 13, local Washington time. Earlier, White House officials had stated that Donald Trump would announce the U.S. strategy concerning Iran's nuclear agreement with six world powers, the JCPOA, as well as regarding Iran's 'bad behavior' in the region. On Thursday, American media reported that the U.S. government had informed Congress that Donald Trump would not certify Iran's compliance with the nuclear agreement. According to U.S. Congressional law, the government must report every 90 days to lawmakers whether Iran is complying with the JCPOA or not. Since taking office, Mr. Trump has certified Iran's compliance with the JCPOA twice, but reports have emerged in recent weeks that he is no longer interested in doing so and will not do it for the third time. According to Congressional law, if the U.S. government does not certify Iran's compliance in a report to lawmakers, Congress will have 60 days to decide whether to reinstate sanctions against Iran or continue the JCPOA. Meanwhile, all U.S. partners in the JCPOA, namely the members of the 1+5 group and even Democratic and Republican representatives who previously opposed the agreement, have urged the Trump administration to remain committed to the JCPOA. According to the French news agency, the Chinese government has made the same request on Friday for the last time, urging the U.S. not to withdraw from the JCPOA. A spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry stated, 'We believe this agreement is important because it guarantees the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons in the world and peace and stability in the region.' This last effort in Beijing comes after the Chinese Foreign Minister had a phone conversation with his American counterpart the day before, emphasizing this request. The U.S. State Department officially reported on Thursday, but without details, that Rex Tillerson, the U.S. Secretary of State, had discussed this matter with his counterparts in Russia, Britain, France, and China. According to a statement from the U.S. State Department reported by Reuters, Mr. Tillerson spoke in phone conversations 'about the general shape of the plan... that the President [Trump] will announce on Friday.' According to common diplomatic practice, the U.S. should have informed its political partners of this plan and its details before making an official and public announcement.