In response to President Trump’s announcement today that he will not certify to Congress that Iran is meeting its commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services, made the following statement:

“Trump has absolutely no concept of what is in the national interest of our country. His decision to decertify a pivotal agreement that has so far delivered on its promise of blocking Iran’s path to nuclear weapons represents a total break from reason, logic and evidence, and betrays a striking misunderstanding of the purpose of the nuclear deal itself. Trump’s decision also has created widespread uncertainty about the ability of the U.S. to uphold its international commitments, and this puts cooperation on any future sanctions regime at serious risk.

“As Trump seeks any excuse to break away from the Iran nuclear agreement, how will we ever be able to convince Kim Jong-un that America will honor any commitment to integrate North Korea into the world community if it gives up its nuclear and missile program?

“What we have now is a crisis in the quality of U.S. leadership, which may soon put both the U.S. and global security in serious jeopardy.”

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