Mogherini to Visit Washington to Defend Nuclear Deal

Federica Mogherini, the EU's foreign policy chief, announced on Monday that she will travel to Washington in the coming weeks to encourage American lawmakers not to withdraw from the nuclear deal. Mogherini, who led the negotiations that resulted in the nuclear agreement with Iran, emphasized after the meeting of foreign ministers from the 28 EU member states in Luxembourg on Monday, October 16, that there is no alternative to this agreement. According to a report by the German news agency, she stated, 'We do not expect this agreement to end; our expectation is that the agreement is maintained and implemented by all parties.' The EU foreign policy chief reminded that the continued implementation of the JCPOA by all parties to the agreement is 'a strong commitment for the European Union.' Additionally, according to a report by Agence France-Presse, Federica Mogherini informed reporters that she will soon visit Washington to ask American lawmakers not to withdraw from the nuclear deal. She did not specify the exact timing of this trip but mentioned that her visit to Washington will take place in early November. Under the nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers, which was reached in July 2015 after years of negotiations in Vienna, part of the international sanctions against Tehran is lifted in exchange for restrictions on Iran's nuclear program. However, Donald Trump's decision not to certify Iran's compliance with the nuclear deal gives the U.S. Congress a 60-day window to decide on the possible reinstatement of sanctions against Iran, a decision that could jeopardize the future of the JCPOA. This decision has raised concerns among other parties to the nuclear agreement, who worry that the U.S.'s hardline strategy towards Iran could undermine efforts to encourage North Korea to resolve its nuclear crisis through dialogue. In this context, Rex Tillerson, the U.S. Secretary of State, reiterated on Sunday in an interview with CNN the weaknesses of the JCPOA but rejected the notion that the new U.S. strategy towards Iran would negatively impact diplomatic efforts regarding the North Korean crisis. However, the foreign ministers of the European Union stated in their statement on Monday that 'in the face of acute nuclear threats, Europe has concluded that preserving the JCPOA is a key pillar in the international non-proliferation structure.' In this regard, Mogherini also told reporters that 'European ministers are clearly concerned about the reality that messages related to the JCPOA could negatively impact the likelihood of starting negotiations or even opening space for negotiations with North Korea.' Earlier, in the first reaction to the new U.S. strategy towards Iran, the leaders of Germany, France, and the UK, three countries involved in the nuclear negotiations, described remaining in this agreement as 'in line with their common national interests.' In addition to the three European countries, Russia and China, as two other members of the nuclear negotiations, have also defended the continuation of this agreement. Meanwhile, Herbert McMaster, Donald Trump's national security advisor, described Iran as 'unreliable' in an interview with Fox News and expressed confidence that America's allies would support its strategy regarding the nuclear deal with Iran. Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the UN, told NBC News that her country will currently remain in the nuclear deal with Iran but that the Trump administration seeks a 'proportional response' to Iran's actions on a global scale. She also accused other countries of turning a blind eye to Iran's destabilizing behaviors, such as 'pursuing ballistic missile tests,' 'supporting terrorism,' and 'arms trafficking,' to 'protect' the nuclear deal. Iran, through its foreign minister, has stated that the cancellation of the nuclear agreement would lead to a loss of trust in the U.S. and emphasized that it does not intend to be the first country to exit the Vienna nuclear agreement. In this context, can Iran hope for support from Europe to counter the U.S.? The foreign ministers of the European Union have called for U.S. Congress support for the Iranian nuclear agreement.