Iran mocks ‘illogical’ White House nuclear warning after Donald Trump accused Tehran of ‘playing with fire’
IRAN has today mocked the United States over claims it had been breaching the 2015 nuclear deal BEFORE it was signed.
Foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted “seriously?” in response to a White House statement which referred to the agreement aimed at reducing Tehran’s uranium.
Yesterday, the Trump administration said: “There is little doubt that even before the deal’s existence, Iran was violating its terms.”
The White House did not elaborate on how the Islamic Republic could breach the deal’s terms before it existed.
Daryl Kimball, of the Arms Control Association, said the White House’s claim was “illogical”.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump accused Iran of “playing with fire” after stockpiling enriched uranium.
‘ILLOGICAL’ CLAIM
He said: “They know what they’re doing. They know what they’re playing with, and I think they’re playing with fire. So, no message to Iran whatsoever.”
The White House said it would continue its maximum pressure on Iran until the Middle Eastern country changes course.
Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers saw it limit its enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.
Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the accord last year calling it “disastrous” and “one-sided”.
‘EXTREMELY CONCERNING’
On Monday, Iranian officials acknowledged the country had broke through the limit the deal placed on its stockpile of low-enriched uranium.
The UK government called the situation “extremely concerning”.
A spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May said: “We have been consistently clear that our commitment to the deal depends on Iran complying in full with the terms of the deal and we urge them to reverse this step.”
MOST READ IN NEWS
This comes as a senior Iranian parliamentarian said Israel would be destroyed in 30 minutes if its ally the United States attacks the Islamic Republic, it has been reported.
Last month, Trump called off a planned air strike against Iran after Tehran blasted an American spy plane out of the sky.
Mojtaba Zolnour, the chairman of the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy commission threatened to strike Israel in the event of a US attack, the Mehr news agency reports.
He said: “If the US attacks us, only half an hour will remain of Israel’s lifespan.”
What is the Iran nuclear deal?
- The deal was an agreement between the Islamic Republic and a group of world powers aimed at scrapping the Middle Eastern country’s nuclear weapons programme.
- It saw Iran agree to eliminate its stockpile of medium-enriched uranium by 98 per cent.
- According to the deal, Iran would receive relief from the US, European Union, and the United Nations Security Council on all nuclear-related economic sanctions.
- The agreement was reached on July 14, 2015, and the world powers signed it in Vienna.
- However, on May 8, 2018, President Trump announced the US will withdraw from the agreement – which he has repeatedly called “insane” and ridiculous”.
- America’s withdrawal from the agreement mean crippling economic sanctions will once again be placed on Iran – further heightening tensions between the two countries.
Recent US and Iran tensions
- May 5: USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group and a bomber task force is deployed in Middle East in response to ‘a number of troubling and escalatory indications and warnings’ by Iran.
- May 8: Iran vows to enrich its uranium stockpile if world powers fail to negotiate new terms for its nuclear deal. The US responds by imposing sanctions on Iran’s metals industry.
- May 10: The US says it will move a Patriot missile battery into the Middle East to counter threats from Iran.
- May 24: President Trump says the US will bolster its military presence in the Middle East with an additional 1,500 troops.
- May 12: The UAE says four commercial ships off its eastern coast “were subjected to sabotage operations,” just hours after Iranian and Lebanese media outlets air false reports of explosions at a nearby Emirati port.
- June 13: Two oil tankers are attacked in the Gulf of Oman – Washington blames Iran while Tehran denies involvement
- June 18: US sends more than 1,000 additional troops to Middle East citing Iran’s ‘hostile behaviour’
- June 20: Iran shoots down American ‘spy’ drone insisting the aircraft had flown over its airspace – a claim the US denied
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368. You can WhatsApp us on 07810 791 502. We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours