Iran Sees No Point to Rouhani-Trump Summit After US Withdrawal From JCPOA

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that he saw no point in a meeting between Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his US counterpart Donald Trump after the latter’s decision to leave the Iranian nuclear deal.

"Not, when the previous huge progress that we made was thrown out …That [previous deal] was for us the litmus test of whether we can trust the United States or not," Zarif told the CNN broadcaster answering the question whether Rouhani should meet with Trump.

The Iranian foreign minister pointed out that it would depend on Trump whether Iran would be ready to sign the new deal with the United States.

"It depends on President Trump — whether he wants to make us believe that he is a reliable partner … Now if we spend time with him and he signs another agreement… How long will it last? Until the end of his administration? Until he departs from the place where he put his signature on the agreement?" Zarif said.
He pointed out that years of foreign economic pressure made Iranian people resistant to sanctions, which under any circumstances will hurt the Iranian economy.

"US sanctions have always hurt … What it's hurting, though, is people who want to buy medicine. People who want to buy food," Zarif added.

The second wave of US reinstated sanctions, that will hurt the oil and gas industry in Iran and its energy sector, as well as the transactions with the Central Bank of Iran, is slated for November.

In May, Trump announced that the United States would withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, known formally as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). In addition, Trump announced that the United States would be reinstating sanctions on Iran, previously lifted under the JCPOA in exchange for Tehran maintaining a peaceful nuclear program. This unilateral move has been opposed by other signatories of the JCPOA.