Europeans say Trump has no power to cancel Iran nuclear deal - washingtonpost

BRUSSELS — European leaders pushed back sharply Friday against President Trump’s decision to strip White House backing from the Iran nuclear deal, saying the move would weaken U.S. credibility, drive a wedge within the Western alliance and hurt global efforts to address dangers from Tehran to North Korea.

They also insisted they would carry on with an agreement designed to keep Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, and they challenged Trump’s authority to scuttle a deal that is enshrined in international law via a U.N. resolution. 

“The president of the United States has many powers,” said European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini at a Brussels news conference minutes after Trump announced his decision at the White House. “Not this one.”

In contrast to Trump’s portrayal of a broken agreement that allows Iran to evade sanctions with only minimal inspections, a stern-faced Mogherini described the deal as “robust” and said Iran is upholding its end of the bargain, with no recorded violations.  

“The deal has prevented and continues to prevent and will continue to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon,” she said.

Europeans say Trump has no power to cancel Iran nuclear deal

The world has nearly 15,000 nuclear weapons. This year’s Nobel Peace Prize honors the quest to abolish all of them.