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US reneging on Iran nuclear deal illegal under international law: Analyst

Saturday, 07 October 2017 4:04 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 07 October 2017 6:59 PM ]

US President Donald Trump (R) speaks as Defense Secretary James Mattis (2R) looks on during a meeting with senior military leaders in the Cabinet Room of the White House on October 5, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

An analyst says “it is not up to the United States to decide on the validity” of the 2015 landmark nuclear agreement between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries, given the fact that Washington is not the only signatory to the deal.

“Under international law it is actually completely illegal to renege on something that has been signed by various parties, including of course Iran but other Western countries. So this is something that is binding and I do not think the US realizes that it would be against its interests, not just legal interests but even politically speaking, that would set Washington on a clash course with the UK and with the EU when it comes to the ramifications and repercussions of such a decision, should it decide in fact to renege and actually decertify the agreement,” Catherine Shakdam, director of Shafaqna Institute for Middle Eastern Studies told PressTV in an interview on Saturday.

The nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was reached between Iran and the P5+1 countries — namely the US, Russia, China, France, Britain, and Germany — in July 2015 and took effect in January 2016. Under the deal, Iran undertook to apply certain limits to its nuclear program in exchange for the termination of all nuclear-related sanctions against Tehran.

However, the administration of US President Donald Trump, which took over in January 2017, one year after the JCPOA came into force, has been opposed to the accord. Trump himself has verbally attacked the deal numerous times and is reportedly planning to refuse to certify Iran’s compliance with the deal at a mid-October deadline under an American law.