TEHRAN: Iranian hard-line lawmakers lit a paper US flag on fire at parliament on Wednesday after President
Donald Trump's nuclear deal pullout, shouting, "Death to America!"
The impromptu demonstration reflected broad public anger in Iran after Trump's decision, which threatens to destroy the 2015 nuclear accord. While Iranian officials, including the parliament speaker, say they hope Europe will work with them to preserve the deal, many are pessimistic.
The lawmakers, including a Shia cleric, held the flaming flag alight as their colleagues joined their chants. They also burned a piece of paper representing the nuclear deal and stomped on the papers' ashes.
Mental capacity
The speaker of the Iranian parliament mocked Trump, saying he was not fit for his job.
"Trump does not have the mental capacity to deal with issues," speaker Ali Larijani told the assembly. Larijani comes from one of the most prominent political families in Iran and often acts as a diplomatic envoy.
While US flag-burning is common in Iran and harsh criticism of America has been a staple of Iranian parliamentary politics for years, it was the first time political observers could remember anything being burned inside the parliament itself.
The 2015 agreement imposed restrictions on Iran's nuclear program in return for the lifting of most US and international sanctions.
However, the deal came with time limits and did not address Iran's ballistic missile program or its regional policies in Syria and elsewhere. Trump has repeatedly pointed to those omissions in referring to the accord as the "worst deal ever." Proponents of the deal have said those time limits were meant to encourage more discussion with Iran in the future that could eventually address other concerns.
Late Tuesday night, President
Hassan Rouhani said he'd be sending Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to the countries still in the deal — China, France, Germany, Russia and the United Kingdom.
Iran hopes the European Union will pass laws to protect European firms from any potential US sanctions. EU officials have suggested they'll do what they can to salvage the agreement.
Still, Rouhani made a point of stressing that Iran, at any time, could resume its nuclear program.
"So if necessary, we can begin our industrial enrichment without any limitations," the Iranian leader said. "Until implementation of this decision, we will wait for some weeks and will talk with our friends and allies and other signatories of the nuclear deal, who signed it and who will remain loyal to it. Everything depends on our national interests."
Wednesday morning after the flag burning, parliament speaker Ali Larijani said responsibility for saving the deal fell on the EU and other world powers still in the accord.
"The period is only a window in which the EU can prove if it has enough weight for settling down international issues or not?" he said.
Larijani also urged the country's nuclear department to prepare for "resumption of all aspects of nuclear activities."
Many Iranians are worried about what Trump's decision could mean for their country.
The Iranian rial is already trading on the black market at 66,000 to the dollar, despite a government-set rate of 42,000 rials. Many say they have not seen any benefits from the nuclear deal.
Iran's poor economy and unemployment sparked nationwide protests in December and January that saw at least 25 people killed and, reportedly, nearly 5,000 arrested.
Strain on US-Europe relations
Trump's decision intensifies the strain on the trans-Atlantic alliance since he took office 16 months ago. One by one, European leaders came to Washington and tried to meet his demands, while pleading with him to preserve the deal.
The Trump administration kept the door open to negotiating another deal with allies, but it is far from clear whether the Europeans would pursue that option or be able to convince Iran to accept it.
The leaders of Britain, Germany and France, signatories to the deal along with China and Russia, said in a joint statement that Trump's decision was a cause for "regret and concern."
China said it regretted the move. Its foreign ministry said Beijing would safeguard the deal and called on all relevant parties "to assume a responsible attitude".
A Western diplomat was more pointed.
"It announces sanctions for which the first victims will be Trump's European allies," the diplomat said, adding that it was clear Trump did not care about the alliance.
'America first'
Abandoning the Iran pact was one of the most consequential decisions of Trump's high-stakes "America First" policy, which has led him to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate accord, come close to a trade war with China and pull out of an Asian-Pacific trade deal.
It also appeared to reflect the growing influence within the administration of Iran hawks like new Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and national security adviser John Bolton.
Iran denies it has tried to build atomic weapons and says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. UN inspectors say Iran has not broken the nuclear deal and senior US officials themselves have said several times that Iran is in technical compliance with the pact.
Renewing sanctions would make it much harder for Iran to sell its oil abroad or use the international banking system.
Iran is the third-largest member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and pumps about 3.8 million barrels per day of crude, or just under 4 percent of global supply. China, India, Japan and South Korea buy most of its 2.5 million bpd of exports.
According to the US Treasury, sanctions related to Iran's energy, auto and financial sectors will be reimposed in three and six months.
Licenses for Boeing Co and Airbus to sell passenger jets to Iran will be revoked, US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said, scuttling a $38 billion deal.
Trump said the nuclear agreement did not prevent Iran from cheating and continuing to pursue nuclear weapons.
"It is clear to me that we cannot prevent an Iranian nuclear bomb under the decaying and rotten structure of the current agreement," he said. "The Iran deal is defective at its core."
Trump said he was willing to negotiate a new deal with Iran, but Tehran already has ruled that out and threatened unspecified retaliation if Washington pulled out.
Iran's growing military and political power in Yemen, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq worries the United States, Israel and US Arab allies such as Saudi Arabia.
Among the few nations to welcome Trump's decision to renege on the deal were Israel and Saudi Arabia, Iran's arch-foes in the Middle East.
