Iranian President Hassan Rouhani addressed the nation in a televised speech Tuesday night following Donald Trump’s announcement that Washington would withdraw from the landmark nuclear deal and reinstate sanctions that were lifted under the agreement.
“For 40 years we have been saying, and I say it one more time tonight, that Iran always lives up to its commitments while the US has never done so,” the president said. “The US has always adopted hostile stances against the Islamic Republic.”
Rouhani noted the US involvement in the 1953 Iranian coup, its support to Saddam Hussein during Iraq’s invasion of Iran, its shooting down of Iran Air Flight 655 in 1988, and its aggression against Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, people of the Middle East, North Africa and other nations across the world.
“Trump announced tonight that the US is pulling out of the nuclear deal; I want to know when the US has ever complied with its commitments under the JCPOA since the agreement was signed,” he said. “Meanwhile, the IAEA has confirmed Iran’s commitment to all of its JCPOA-related obligations. Tonight we saw which country does not respect international obligations.”
“The only supporter of the US withdrawal from the JCPOA is the Zionist regime; a regime with a long dark record of occupation and too many crimes,” he said.
“From this moment onward, the JCPOA is an agreement between Iran and five countries, and the 5+1 has just lost its ‘1’,” Rouhani continued. “We have now a JCPOA without the US in it, but our economic growth will continue.”
“Now we have to wait and see what the six major countries will do in this situation. Our Foreign Ministry will begin talks with the European sides, China and Russia in a few weeks,” he said.
He went on to add, “if our talks lead to the conclusion that our cooperation with the remaining five countries would fulfill all the demands of the Iranian nation under the JCPOA, the agreement will stay despite the US and Israel’s efforts and Trump’s impudent remarks.”
“But if our interests are not met,” Rouhani continued, “I will soon inform the Iranian people of our decisions in this situation.”
The president reassured the Iranian people not to have any worries about the future of the country, adding “for months we had arrived at the conclusion that Trump is not committed to the JCPOA and we based our economic decisions on this conclusion. People will see that Iran’s economy will continue to prosper and the market will remain stable even without the US’ participation in the nuclear deal.”
“What Trump did tonight was an act of psychological warfare to put pressure on our economy, but we will not allow him to succeed,” he said.
“I have ordered the Atomic Energy Organization to be prepared to resume enrichment without any limits,” Rouhani said. “We will wait a few weeks before acting on this decision and continue our talks with our friends, allies and those parties still remaining faithful to the nuclear deal.”
He went on to add, “everything depends on our national interests. If our interests are met under the JCPOA, we will continue to abide by it. If not, we will choose a different path.”
“I feel sorry that the great American people have been saddled with leaders who have tarnished their reputation, but on the other hand, I am glad that a pesky side has pulled out of the nuclear deal,” Rouhani said.
The president further promised that Iran would successfully continue its path, and that he would address the nation in a more detailed speech soon.
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