Nikki Haley says Trump's Iran deal announcement is a message for North Korea

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said during an appearance on NBC's Meet the Press Sunday that President Trump's Friday announcement about the Iran deal was motivated by a desire to avoid a situation similar to U.S.-North Korea relations.

"The whole reason we're looking at this Iran agreement is because of North Korea," Haley told host Chuck Todd. "When you look at the fact that 25 years of botched agreements and negotiations and accountability not kept by North Korea, that's the whole situation that got us to where we're having to watch day by day to see if they do an [intercontinental ballistic missile] test going forward."

In another Sunday interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos, Haley further said the Iran announcement is meant to be a message for Pyongyang. Asked whether changing the terms of the deal will "send a message to [North Korea] saying it's not worth it to engage in any talks with the United States," Haley replied that it "sends the perfect message to North Korea, which is, 'We're not gonna engage in a bad deal, and should we ever get into a deal, we're gonna hold you accountable.'"

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Watch a clip of the ABC interview below. Bonnie Kristian