Rather than tear up the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) upon taking office, writes Lee Smith, Donald Trump would do better to follow its terms, and wait for Tehran to renounce it:
The Obama administration told Congress that the deal did not eliminate non-nuclear sanctions, like those related to terrorism, ballistic missiles, and human rights. After it was signed, however, and Iran was emboldened throughout the Middle East, the White House blocked congressional efforts to enforce existing non-nuclear sanctions and impose new ones. If the Trump administration doesn’t block Congress from reinstating and imposing sanctions, as member have wanted to do over the last year, the regime will crash the deal.
The same holds for overlooking Iranian violations of the JCPOA. Last week’s transgression was a repeat of the regime’s February violation of the heavy-water threshold. When the White House coughed up cash for the 32 tons, it legitimized a state sponsor of terror as a nuclear supplier. If the Trump administration merely stops overlooking Iranian violations of the JCPOA, the regime will very likely opt out of President Obama’s chief foreign-policy achievement. . . .
At that point, the next administration will have an important decision to reach, one made even more urgent by the mendacious tactics of its predecessor. What happens if the master of the art of the deal can’t get Iran back to the table for an agreement that better suits American interests? What if the regime pushes ahead with its nuclear-weapons program? Estimates suggest the Iranians are about a year from a nuclear breakout. Will the next White House take action to stop them or will it, too, push a phony agreement and put American citizens, allies, and interests at risk?
Read more on Weekly Standard: http://www.weeklystandard.com/the-art-of-undoing-the-iran-deal/article/2005351