AMBASSADOR/IRAN/NIKKI HALEY/UN: “U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley on Tuesday [9-5-17] laid out a path for the White House to declare that Iran isn’t complying with the 2015 nuclear deal—but leave it to Congress to decide what to do.
Although the U.S. has said Tehran is technically abiding by its commitments, Ms. Haley raised critical questions about the deal, in an effort to give President Donald Trump support should he choose not to certify Iranian compliance.
Mr. Trump has called the accord between Iran and six world powers ‘the worst deal ever,’ but some of his advisers in recent months have been looking for ways to let the president say Iran isn’t complying without immediately killing it…
Mr. Trump faces a deadline in October when he must tell Congress whether he believes that Iran is meeting the terms of the deal, which required Iran to cut back its nuclear capabilities in exchange for sanctions relief.
While Ms. Haley said she didn’t know what Mr. Trump will say, the president said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal in July that he is likely to say Iran isn’t meeting its commitments.
The Obama administration hailed the deal as a historic step in curbing Iran’s nuclear ambitions and said they didn’t intend to focus on Iran’s other destabilizing behavior in the region. In her speech, Ms. Haley said the Obama administration drew ‘an artificial line between the Iranian regime’s nuclear development and the rest of its lawless behavior.’ “
-Felicia Schwartz, “U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley Hints at Congress Role in Making Call on Iran Nuclear Deal,” The Wall Street Journal online, Sept. 5, 2017 08:03pm