Iran Prepares for the Worst as US Awaits Election Results

Biden has said he would return to the 2015 nuclear deal

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday that his country is prepared for a difficult relationship with the US regardless of who wins the presidential election.

“We have planned based on the assumption that the methods and behaviors of the US will not return to the correct approach,” Rouhani said in a televised address.

In the address, Rouhani also said the US should respect Iran and return to the 2015 nuclear deal. “We want to be respected, not subject to sanctions,” he said. “No matter who wins the US election … what we want is for the US to return to law … to return to international and multilateral accords.”

The Trump administration withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal in 2018, when the US reimposed sanctions on Iran. Since then, the administration has continued its “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran, ramping up sanctions to squeeze the country’s economy.

In October, the US sanctioned 18 Iranian banks, essentially blacklisting the county’s entire financial sector. Since the new measures have been put in place, ordinary Iranians have been facing shortages of insulin and other medicines.

Joe Biden has said he would work with Iran to return to the nuclear deal if elected, although he could face pressure from Congress to negotiate a tougher deal. Iran has made it clear that they would never agree to a new deal before sanctions relief.

Author: Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com, follow him on Twitter @decampdave.