2015 Iran nuclear deal

What was the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, and why was it important?

By Sana Noor Haq

Ever since US President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, he has mocked the “decaying” and “rotten” agreement brokered by his predecessor.

The Obama-era Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) capped Iran’s uranium enrichment for 15 years and facilitated UN-led inspections to ensure Tehran’s adherence to the deal, in exchange for partially dissolving sanctions on Iranian oil wealth and unfreezing billions of dollars in assets.

The deal had broad international support, but was opposed by some US and Israeli lawmakers. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an address to the US Congress insisted the deal left much of Iran’s military power intact.

Trump abandoned the JCPOA in 2018, during his first presidency. Other signatories tried to sustain the agreement, but Iran gradually reduced its compliance from 2019, and the deal ultimately unraveled.

In February of this year, after US-Israeli strikes on Tehran disrupted tense talks to reach a fresh nuclear deal, hopes of achieving a new agreement began to fall apart. Iran has retaliated by effectively shutting off the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important energy chokepoint, giving Tehran new leverage over the US.

The White House has repeatedly demanded that Iran stop all uranium enrichment and relinquish its stockpile of near-bomb-grade material, something Tehran refuses to do. Instead, Iran insists on retaining its grip on shipping through the key strait as a tool of pressure to bring an end to crippling economic sanctions. It now says that it will only discuss its nuclear program after the war ends.

On Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi handed Pakistani mediators a proposal to end the war and reopen the choked waterway – without addressing the US president’s call for Tehran to hand over its nuclear program.