US Treasury Secretary Warns Against Unilateral Withdrawal from Iran Agreement

In a television interview, US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew referred to the lifting of sanctions on Iran and the threats from Republicans regarding the dismantling of the nuclear agreement, stating that such an action would be "destabilizing and dangerous." In a conversation with Charlie Rose on April 10, he mentioned that if there is no possibility of lifting economic sanctions against governments, no country will be willing to change its policies. He warned that the failure of the US to respond to the agreement made with Iran would mean losing Washington's credibility for sanctioning others and forcing them to change their behavior. After months of negotiations between the officials of Hassan Rouhani's government and the P5+1, Iran and six global powers reached an agreement that limits the nuclear program and ends nuclear sanctions against Iran. According to Reuters, Lew stated, "If you reach an agreement that is based on: change your policy to be freed from sanctions; then there must also be a way to lift the penalties." He added that if this does not happen, "no one will change their policy in response to the imposition of sanctions." Republican Senator Ted Cruz and billionaire Donald Trump have referred to the nuclear agreement with Iran as a "bad deal" that "endangers the security of the US and Israel," stating that they would abandon it if elected president. Lew, who played a key role in establishing the extensive sanctions structure against Iran during Barack Obama's presidency, said such a move would lead to "instability" and could be "dangerous." According to the New York Times, Lew also pointed to the problems arising from lifting nuclear sanctions while maintaining other sanctions related to "support for terrorism" or human rights issues in Iran. The newspaper quoted the US Treasury Secretary as saying, "If you are sitting in Tehran right now, you do not necessarily feel that you have much relief (from sanctions)." The United States has lifted nuclear sanctions on Iran, but other sanctions remain in place. Iran denies the accusation of supporting terrorism. The US Treasury Secretary emphasized that the impact of sanctions is greater the more international support they gain and are applied in cooperation with other countries. He stated that sanctions should not be viewed as a weapon for "punishing past actions," but as a means to change policies. This Obama administration official noted that on one hand, "one cannot dismiss the idea that imposing sanctions weakens economic growth," but on the other hand, he added that "sanctions should not be used frivolously." Reuters reported that the US government has used sanctions over the years to counter various threats to its interests, from cyberattacks to financial support for extremist groups or drug trafficking.