U.S. State Department: Decision on JCPOA to be Announced on Friday

A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department announced on Tuesday, January 9, that the President of the United States will announce his decision regarding the nuclear agreement with Iran, known as the JCPOA, on Friday. The Trump administration must decide by January 12 whether to extend the suspension of sanctions under the nuclear agreement with Iran. According to Reuters, David Goldstein, one of the spokespersons for the U.S. State Department, stated that Donald Trump will meet with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis at the White House in the coming days before announcing his decision. The spokesperson also added: 'We expect the decision to be announced on Friday. Consultations on this matter are ongoing.' The nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers, namely the U.S., the U.K., France, China, Russia, and Germany, was reached in 2015, and according to a congressional resolution, the U.S. President must report to Congress every 90 days on Iran's compliance with the JCPOA. Following the previous deadline in October, Donald Trump refrained from certifying Iran's actions. However, since then, Congress has not made a decision on this matter, and the 90-day deadline will expire again on January 12. Supporters of this agreement, with European countries being among the most important, believe that monitoring Iran's nuclear program will prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, Donald Trump has been one of the main critics of the JCPOA over the past year, calling it 'the worst deal.' During recent protests in Iran, Trump once again questioned the JCPOA, stating that the money gained from this agreement has been spent on 'adventurism' in the Middle East instead of benefiting the Iranian people. As the U.S. government prepares to announce its stance on the suspension of sanctions against Iran, Abbas Araghchi, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran, has warned the international community to prepare for a potential U.S. withdrawal from this agreement. Additionally, the European Union has invited Zarif for discussions on the 'JCPOA' on Thursday. 52 U.S. security experts have called for the continuation of the nuclear agreement with Iran, and Tillerson has reported on consultations regarding the U.S. remaining in the JCPOA.