On Tuesday, President Trump signed an executive order to reinstate a policy of “maximum pressure” against Iran.
“Maximum pressure” refers to the Iran policy of the previous Trump administration, which involved withdrawing from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, imposing crippling sanctions on the Islamic Republic, and assassinating Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani.
President Biden essentially continued the Trump administration’s policy and imposed additional sanctions on Iran. But over the years, Iran found oil markets in Asia that were not afraid of US sanctions.
According to Fox News, when Trump signed the order, he said he was “unhappy to do it” and that he hoped “we’re not going to have to use it very much,” signaling he may pursue a deal with Tehran.
Recent media reports said Trump was expected to assign his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, to pursue diplomacy with Iran. Speaking with reporters alongside Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on Tuesday, Trump signaled that he was not interested in striking Iran or backing an Israeli attack on its nuclear facilities.
He was asked by a reporter if now was a good time to hit Iran because it was “weak” and said, “They’re very strong right now, and we’re not going to let them get a nuclear weapon.”
Despite all the hype around Iran’s nuclear weapons program, there’s no evidence that Iran is seeking a bomb. Iran is still a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, unlike Israel, which has a covert nuclear stockpile that the US doesn’t officially recognize.
