Trump announces that the U.S. will withdraw from the Iran deal

(Image credit: SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)

published 8 May 2018

President Trump announced Tuesday that the U.S. will withdraw from the Iran deal, which suspends punishing economic sanctions on Iran in exchange for Tehran's commitment to curbing its nuclear program. "In theory the so-called Iran deal was supposed to protect the U.S. and our allies from the lunacy of an Iranian nuclear bomb," Trump said, but "in fact, the deal allowed Iran to continue enriching uranium." The administration will reportedly not impose sanctions for up to six months.

Trump also addressed Iranian citizens, telling them: "The future of Iran belongs to its people."

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has hinted that Tehran would respect the accord even if the U.S. doesn't, and CNN's Christiane Amanpour called Trump's decision "possibly the greatest deliberate act of self-harm and self-sabotage in geo-strategic politics in the modern era." Watch Trump's comments below. Jeva Lange

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.