Nikki Haley Emphasizes the Need to Hold Iran Accountable for Its Actions in the Region

Nikki Haley, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, emphasized on Thursday, April 5, the necessity of holding Iran accountable for its actions in the region, stating that the U.S. is negotiating with its European allies to amend the nuclear agreement with Iran. Speaking at Duke University, the U.N. Ambassador addressed the issue of the U.S. confronting international threats and the nuclear agreement with Iran, known as the JCPOA, as well as the country's missile program. Haley stated that for years, not only the U.S. but also our European allies ignored Iran's ballistic missile tests, support for terrorism, and repression of the Iranian people in the pursuit of maintaining the nuclear agreement. In July 2015, Iran and six world powers, including the U.S., Russia, China, France, the United Kingdom, and Germany, reached an agreement to resolve Iran's nuclear program and lift international sanctions against it. Under this agreement, Iran accepted to halt many of its nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of nuclear sanctions. According to the U.N. Ambassador, the architects of this nuclear agreement believed they faced two options: accepting a 'bad deal' or 'war with Iran.' Haley asserted that the current U.S. administration has had the courage to challenge this false narrative of options. We are strengthening this agreement in cooperation with our European allies and want to hold Iran accountable for its support of terrorism in the region. Haley added that the President has set a deadline for mid-May for the continuation of U.S. participation in the nuclear agreement with Iran, and regardless of whether we stay in this agreement or not, taking a firm approach to hold Iran accountable for its actions will send a strong message to both Iran and North Korea. Donald Trump, the U.S. President, set a deadline two months ago to address the deficiencies he identified in the JCPOA, threatening that without addressing these deficiencies, he would not extend the lifting of sanctions against Iran and would withdraw from the nuclear agreement. This deadline expires on May 12, 2018. The Washington Post recently reported that Trump will abandon the JCPOA; this assessment was also recently reiterated by the Israeli Prime Minister. European governments involved in the nuclear negotiations with Iran have recently held discussions with U.S. representatives in several European cities to examine Washington's specific requests for changes to the JCPOA while simultaneously holding meetings with Iranian officials. Regarding the implications of a potential U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear agreement for North Korea, the U.S. Ambassador criticized those who say that a U.S. exit from the JCPOA or amending this agreement could send a message to North Korea that U.S. commitments in agreements cannot be trusted, stating they are completely mistaken. Haley emphasized that insisting on more inspections, eliminating the sunset clause, and ending Iran's ballistic missile program would send a message to North Korea that we are ready to deal and will not accept a bad agreement. The U.S. Ambassador further stated that America's efforts at the U.N. to intensify diplomatic pressures and sanctions against Pyongyang have led North Korean leadership to announce their desire to negotiate. Haley continued by stating that what we do regarding the Iranian regime will impact negotiations with North Korea. The U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. stressed that demonstrating strong leadership against Iran will yield better results regarding Pyongyang. Donald Trump has set four conditions for continued U.S. participation in the JCPOA, which include: 'immediate' access for international inspectors to all Iranian sites and facilities, making restrictions on Iran's nuclear program permanent, guaranteeing that Iran will not approach nuclear weapons, and limiting Iran's long-range missile program; as Trump stated, the long-range missile program and Iran's nuclear weapons program are 'inseparable.' Meanwhile, Iranian officials have rejected any revision of the nuclear agreement.