Donald Trump announces US pulling out of Iran nuclear deal in hours

Donald Trump announces US pulling out of Iran nuclear deal in hours

Theresa May has announced she remains committed to the Iran nuclear deal after Donald Trump said he was pulling the United States out of the accord.

The US president said he would impose the “highest level” of economic sanctions on Iran as he claimed the state was on the brink of acquiring nuclear weapons.

Iran said it would enrich uranium “more than before… in the next weeks” if negotiations failed over the deal.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu backed Mr Trump, describing the agreement as a “recipe for disaster”.

Britain, France and Germany had made strenuous attempts to persuade the US president to preserve the deal.

But Mr Trump said the agreement was “disastrous” and a “great embarrassment” to him.

Speaking in the White House, Mr Trump said: “The Iran deal is defective at its core. If we do nothing, we know exactly what will happen.

“In just a short period of time, the world’s leading state sponsor of terror will be on the cusp of acquiring the world’s most dangerous weapon.

In a joint statement, Mrs May, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron said the decision was a matter of “regret and concern” and said they remained committed to the deal.

They said: “It is with regret and concern that we, the leaders of France, Germany and the United Kingdom take note of President Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States of America from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

(PA Graphics)
(PA Graphics)

They urged Iran to “show restraint” in response to the decision by the US.

On Monday, Boris Johnson made a diplomatic dash to Washington in a last ditch push to win over the president.

The Foreign Secretary said Mr Trump would be in line for the Nobel Peace Prize if he could fix the agreement.

Boris Johnson urged Donald Trump not to ditch the pact (Stefan Rousseau/PA)
Boris Johnson urged Donald Trump not to ditch the pact (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Under its terms, Iran is committed to a peaceful nuclear energy programme.

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