Trump withdraws US from Iran nuclear deal

Meg Wagner and Veronica Rocha, CNN

Updated 5:16 p.m. ET, May 9, 2018
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12:23 p.m. ET, May 8, 2018

French source calls Trump-Macron call "very, very disappointing"

From CNN's John King

President Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron spoke on the phone today.

A French source familiar with the call described it as “very, very disappointing.” 

When Macron was in the US a few weeks ago, he urged Trump to remain in the Iran deal.

"My commitment, my action is not to try to convince President Trump to walk away from his campaign's commitments or to change his mind," Macron said in April. "I'm not a masochist. I believe that what we should be doing is to try to find an efficient way to build this genuine multilateralism."

12:04 p.m. ET, May 8, 2018

Trump expected to allow Iran sanctions, paving way to pull US out of deal

From CNN’s Kevin Liptak

President Trump is expected to announce today that he will allow sanctions to go forward on Iran, a first step toward withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal, according to a US official and a person familiar with the plan.

However, the sanctions could take months to go into effect as the US government develops guidance for companies and banks.  

The officials cautioned that nothing is final until Trump makes his announcement from the Diplomatic Room of the White House at 2 p.m. ET. 

12:01 p.m. ET, May 8, 2018

White House not commenting on Trump's decision before the 2 p.m. announcement

From CNN’s Kevin Liptak

The White House is not commenting on the call between President Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron or the Trump's decision on the Iran deal ahead of his announcement.

"We are not getting ahead of the President’s remarks at 2," says Sarah Sanders.
11:50 a.m. ET, May 8, 2018

Oil prices drop ahead of Trump's Iran deal announcement

From CNN's Matt Egan

The price of oil is plunging ahead of President Trump's announcement on the Iran nuclear deal.

US crude was down as much as 4.4%.

Traders attributed the decline to nervousness that Trump could surprise the market with a less aggressive decision than anticipated. Lighter or delayed sanctions on Iran would allow it to keep shipping oil overseas, holding the price down.

Trump is expected to announce that he will allow sanctions to go forward on Iran, a first step toward withdrawing from the nuclear deal, according to a US official and a person familiar with the plan.

Earlier today, stocks opened slightly lower as investors await Trump’s decision on the Iran nuclear deal. 

10:09 a.m. ET, May 8, 2018

White House says Congress will be informed of Iran decision later today

From CNN's Kevin Liptak

White House legislative director Marc Short told reporters moments ago that lawmakers would be notified later today of President Trump's decision on the Iran deal.

"They’ll be phone calls going up to the hill this afternoon," Short said, without revealing what the decision would be.

"There’s no doubt that Iran has continued to cause a lot of problems across the Middle East. It certainly doesn't appear like they feel like deal binds them."

He said Trump wants to see Iran end its nuclear program "but also become a nation that is not funding terrorism, not attacking Israel."

Trump, he said, is "looking for an agreement that brings Iran into the international community."

9:58 a.m. ET, May 8, 2018

Trump to speak to French President Macron this morning

From CNN's Kevin Liptak

President Trump will speak with French President Macron at 10 a.m. ET, an official tells CNN.

When Macron was in the US a few weeks ago, he urged Trump to remain in the Iran deal.

"My commitment, my action is not to try to convince President Trump to walk away from his campaign's commitments or to change his mind," Macron said in April. "I'm not a masochist. I believe that what we should be doing is to try to find an efficient way to build this genuine multilateralism."

1:11 p.m. ET, May 8, 2018

John Kerry urges Trump to stay in the Iran deal

From CNN's Rachel Crane

Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images
Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Former US secretary of state John Kerry said Trump should “use this agreement, staying in the agreement, and then focus on the missiles and the other things with some sort of a deadline”. 

"To pull out of it and try to focus on those things totally complicates the ability to achieve the goals and I think it could actually lead to conflict potentially," Kerry told CNN.

Kerry argued for the agreement he was instrumental in brokering in 2015: “Our friends are safer if we stay in this agreement. We made an agreement, Iran is living by the agreement, yes we have concerns on the missiles and Yemen and other things, but we should be working on those. The Obama administration made a clear decision that working on those other issues, making progress on those, is easier with in Iran that does not have a nuclear weapon then with an Iran which is working towards one. 

1:11 p.m. ET, May 8, 2018

Why Trump is tweeting about John Kerry

Trump has been teasing his Iran deal decision for days — and he's brought former secretary of state John Kerry, who is reportedly trying to save the deal, into the discussion.

On Monday, he tweeted:

He followed up today with this tweet:

What Kerry has been working on

Kerry met with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif at the United Nations in New York two weeks ago, their second meeting in about two months, to discuss ways of keeping the deal limiting Iran's nuclear weapons program intact, according to two sources familiar with the interactions.

The former secretary of state also met last month with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, separately sat down with French President Emmanuel Macron and spoke on the phone with European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, the sources told CNN.

9:05 a.m. ET, May 8, 2018

We're talking about the Iran deal today. Here's what's in it

The Iran nuclear deal is a historic 2015 agreement between the US, Iran and other world powers.

The deal took two years to negotiate and is considered a cornerstone of President Barack Obama's foreign policy legacy.

The essential idea behind the deal is that, in exchange for limits on its nuclear activities, Iran would get relief from sanctions while being allowed to continue its atomic program for peaceful purposes.

Some provisions of the 2015 deal:

  • The deal reduces the number of Iranian centrifuges by two-thirds. It places bans on enrichment at key facilities, and limits uranium research and development to the Natanz facility.
  • It caps uranium enrichment at 3.67% and limits the stockpile to 300 kg, all for 15 years.
  • Iran is be required to ship spent fuel out of the country forever, as well as allow inspectors from the IAEA inspectors certain access in perpetuity. Heightened inspections, including tracking uranium mining and monitoring the production and storage of centrifuges, will last for up to 20 years.