Mike Pompeo: The U.S. Seeks a New Nuclear Agreement with Iran

While the White House National Security Advisor has mentioned the 'possibility' of sanctioning European companies that work with Iran, the U.S. Secretary of State says Washington hopes to reach a new nuclear agreement with Iran in cooperation with its allies. John Bolton stated on Sunday, May 12, in an interview with CNN that there is a possibility of sanctions against European companies that continue their business relations with Iran, saying, 'This is a possibility. Everything depends on the actions of other governments.' He did not provide further details on what he meant by the actions of other governments but stated that Europe will realize that the continent's interests lie in 'cooperation' with the U.S. According to Trump's National Security Advisor, Europeans are still analyzing the U.S. President's decision to withdraw from the agreement with Iran and are in shock over Washington's decision to reinstate severe sanctions against the Islamic Republic. He described Iran's continued missile activities as a sign of Tehran's efforts to acquire nuclear weapons and added that the Islamic Republic has 'never' made a strategic decision to abandon its pursuit of nuclear weapons. According to Bolton, the JCPOA has provided Iran with a suitable economic opportunity to achieve this goal. The White House National Security Advisor had previously stated, like Trump, that the JCPOA in its current form has 'fundamental flaws' and does not prevent Iran from producing nuclear bombs. Meanwhile, Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, expressed hope in an interview with Fox News that the United States would be able to reach an agreement with its Western allies in the coming days and weeks that would protect the world not only from Iran's nuclear program but also from the 'bad behavior' of this country. He announced his close cooperation with America's European partners to achieve this agreement. The announcement of the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA has raised concerns among its European partners and intensified diplomatic efforts by Tehran and three European countries to preserve the agreement. China, Russia, Germany, Britain, and France have announced that they will remain in this agreement, and Tehran has also asked them to adhere to their commitments under the JCPOA. Senior officials of the Islamic Republic, while strongly criticizing this U.S. decision, have stated that as long as 'the interests of the Iranian people' are met by the JCPOA, they will remain loyal to this agreement. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, has urged Hassan Rouhani's government not to trust European countries and to obtain 'practical guarantees' from them to secure Iran's interests. Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, also announced on Sunday that if the remaining five countries in the JCPOA 'guarantee that Iran's interests will be realized with the continuation of the JCPOA,' the agreement will remain in place despite the U.S. withdrawal. Mohammad Javad Zarif, the Iranian Foreign Minister, who is on the first day of his tour to negotiate the fate of the JCPOA in China, has stated that Europe must guarantee the preservation of Iran's interests in the JCPOA. After meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, he will go to Russia and then on Tuesday will participate in a meeting with the foreign ministers of France, Germany, Britain, and Federica Mogherini, the EU's foreign policy chief, to discuss the JCPOA.