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Iran deal: Trump breaks with European allies over nuclear agreement


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Boris Johnson, the British foreign secretary, pleads with Donald Trump not to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal

 

Source: Reuters

Mon 7 May 2018 21.05 BST Last modified on Tue 8 May 2018 09.21 BST

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What is the Iran nuclear deal? – video

 

The Iranian nuclear agreement was struck in 2015 under the Obama administration. It prevented Tehran from developing materials that could be used to produce a weapon, but allowed it to pursue domestic power generation...........

 

 

James Bullock, Source: Reuters/Getty/AP

Tue 8 May 2018 16.35 BST

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2018/may/08/what-is-the-iran-nuclear-deal-video-explainer

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President says he will impose ‘highest level of economic sanctions’ on Iran as Tehran vows: ‘We won’t allow Trump to win’

 

Julian Borger in Washington, Saeed Kamali Dehghan in London and Oliver Holmes in Jerusalem

Tue 8 May 2018 21.47 BST

 

 

 

5051.jpg?w=700&q=55&auto=format&usm=12&fit=max&s=7068ccb8fcd7ca9dab073acdf71b043c
Donald Trump announces his intent to withdraw from the Iran nuclear agreement at the White House in Washington Tuesday
Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
 
 
 
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As the Iran crisis looms, prepare for a battle over facts and truth

 

With Trump’s latest move in the Middle East, the world needs accurate information. But distrust in the media runs deeper than ever

 

Tue 8 May 2018 17.24 BST Last modified on Tue 8 May 2018 22.00 BST

 
 
 
 
5243.jpg?w=700&q=55&auto=format&usm=12&fit=max&s=3e4a65e867351ee1dcc72b00768898b1
A billboard by the Committee to Defend the President in Times Square, New York, February 2018
Photograph: Levine/Sipa USA/REX/Shutterstock

 

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/may/08/crisis-iran-challenge-truth-trump-syria

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Iran vows to stick with deal after 'pesky' Trump's departure

 

Hassan Rouhani committed to nuclear deal with UK, France, Germany, Russia and China

 

Saeed Kamali Dehghan in London and Daniel Boffey in Brussels

Tue 8 May 2018 21.55 BST

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/may/08/europe-denounces-trumps-us-withdrawal-from-iran-nuclear-deal

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Now here is an interesting perspective on today's move on Iran...

 

 

 

Three Billionaires Paved Way for Trump’s Iran Deal Withdrawal

 

President Donald Trump has just fulfilled a campaign pledge to tear up the Obama administration’s signature foreign policy achievement, a multilateral agreement constraining Iran’s nuclear enrichment (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action or JCPOA). In doing so, the president went against the advice of, among many others, his secretary of defense, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), Washington’s three most important European allies, and almost-two thirds of Americans who believe that the U.S. should not withdraw from the deal, according to a CNN poll released on Tuesday morning.

Trump appears absolutely determined to undo as much of what Barack Obama accomplished as possible. In addition, the sheer perversity of his personality may well explain today’s action. But it may also be useful to follow the apochryphal advice that Watergate’s famous “Deep Throat” offered to Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein in All the President’s Men, particularly in the unbelievably corrupt swamp of the Trump era.

Indeed, today’s unpopular announcement may have been exactly what two of Trump’s biggest donors, Sheldon Adelson and Bernard Marcus, and what one of his biggest inaugural supporters, Paul Singer, paid for when they threw their financial weight behind Trump. Marcus and Adelson, who are also board members of the Likudist Republican Jewish Coalition, have already received substantial returns on their investment: total alignment by the U.S. behind Israel, next week’s move of the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, and the official dropping of “occupied territories” to describe the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Adelson, for his part, was Trump and the GOP’s biggest campaign supporter. He and his wife Miriam contributed $35 million in outside spending to elect Trump, $20 million to the Congressional Leadership Fund (a super PAC exclusively dedicated to securing a GOP majority in the House of Representatives), and $35 million to the Senate Leadership Fund (the Senate counterpart) in the 2016 election cycle.

Trump, who had previously complained that Adelson was seeking to “mold [Marco Rubio] into the perfect little puppet,” quickly snapped around and echoed Adelson’s hawkish positions on the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem after Trump won the Republican nomination and secured Adelson’s backing.

Politico reported that the most threatening line in Trump’s October UN speech—that he would cancel Washington’s participation in the JCPOA if Congress and U.S. allies did not bend to his efforts to renegotiate it—came directly from John Bolton, now Trump’s national security advisor, and with the full weight of Trump’s biggest donor. The hawkish language was not in the original remarks prepared by Trump’s staff.

The line was added to Trump’s speech after Bolton, despite Kelly’s recent edict [restricting Bolton’s access to Trump], reached the president by phone on Thursday afternoon from Las Vegas, where Bolton was visiting with Republican megadonor Sheldon Adelson. Bolton urged Trump to include a line in his remarks noting that he reserved the right to scrap the agreement entirely, according to two sources familiar with the conversation.

Adelson, for his part, has advocated launching a nuclear weapon against Iran as a negotiating tactic and threatening to nuke Tehran, a city with a population of 8.8 million, if Iran does not completely abandon its nuclear program.

Newt Gingrich, a huge recipient of Adelson’s financial largesse during his failed 2012 presidential campaign, said that Adelson’s “central value” is Israel.

And Adelson isn’t alone in holding radical views about Iran and having the ear of the president, or at least significant financial leverage.

Home Depot cofounder Bernard Marcus, Trump’s second largest campaign contributor, contributed $7 million to pro-Trump Super PACs, $500,000 to the Congressional Leadership Fund (CLF), and $2 million the Senate Leadership Fund (SLF).

In a 2015 Fox Business interview, Marcus compared the JCPOA to “do[ing] business with the devil.” He went on to clarify, “I think Iran is the devil.”

Adelson and Marcus also share a common affinity for the hawkish Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD’s Reuel Marc Gerecht may have set a record by publishing no less than three anti-JCPOA columns for The Atlantic in the past week.) Adelson contributed at least $1.5 million to the group by the end of 2011 (a year that saw a sharp rise in tensions and rumors of war by Israel against Iran) according to FDD’s 2011 Schedule A tax disclosure, and Marcus, the group’s biggest donor, contributed at least $10.7 million.

FDD says Adelson is no longer a contributor, but Marcus continues to give generously, contributing $3.25 million in 2015, the last year for which his foundation’s grants are known.

Hedge Fund billionaire Paul Singer contributed at least $3.6 million to FDD by the end of 2011, making him the group’s second biggest donor after Marcus at the time.

Employees of Singer’s firm, Elliott Management, were the second largest source of funds supporting the 2014 candidacy of the Senate’s most outspoken Iran hawk, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Singer contributed $1.9 million to the CLF and $6 million to the SLF. He was a holdout in supporting Trump’s candidacy and financed the initial research by Fusion GPS that turned into the Steele Dossier detailing alleged ties between Trump’s campaign and businesses with Moscow. But he came around before Trump’s inauguration and contributed $1 million to the festivities.

Between them, the three billionaires account for over $40 million in pro-Trump political money. In the 2016 cycle, the three were also the source of 44% of individual contributions to the CLF and 47% of those received by the SLF, the biggest spending campaign finance vehicles for House and Senate Republicans.

Trump and the GOP are deeply indebted to anti-Iran deal billionaires who aren’t afraid to advocate for policies that push the country closer to another war in the Middle East.

Trump’s decision to back out of the JCPOA might come across as a renegade president bucking conventional wisdom and following through on a poorly thought-out campaign promise to undo the work of his predecessor.

But another explanation is that Trump and the Republican Party are effectively captive to a small cohort of hawkish billionaires dead set on steering the country away from any sort of detente with Iran, even a multilateral agreement that ensures limits on enrichment and subjects the Islamic Republic to invasive inspections of its nuclear facilities.

Both explanations may be true.

And, as if on cue, The Washington Post‘s Ashley Parker reports that Adelson will visit with Trump on Wednesday. It’s “described as a ‘friendly,” long-planned meeting, not related to today’s Iran news.

https://lobelog.com/three-billionaires-paved-way-for-trumps-iran-deal-withdrawal/

 

 

Note I said perspective, not news...

B/A

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Obama condemns 'misguided' violation of Iran deal as Republicans cheer move

 

Former president warns of damage to ‘America’s credibility’

 

Reaction to decision is split along party lines

 

 

Tue 8 May 2018 21.55 BST

Sabrina Siddiqui in Washington

 

 

 

 

4928.jpg?w=700&q=55&auto=format&usm=12&fit=max&s=7aae4c09183b28d5cb6686d02b94d1da
Barack Obama warned of a ‘serious mistake’ in abandoning the deal
Photograph: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images
 
 
 
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Netanyahu: Israel thanks Trump for his courage

 

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel fully supports President Trump's decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal

 

 

 

Vid in link

 

https://edition.cnn.com/videos/world/2018/05/08/israel-prime-minister-benjamin-netanyahu-iran-deal-reaction-sot.cnn

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9 minutes ago, umbertino said:

Obama condemns 'misguided' violation of Iran deal as Republicans cheer move

 

Former president warns of damage to ‘America’s credibility’

 

Reaction to decision is split along party lines

 

 

Tue 8 May 2018 21.55 BST

Sabrina Siddiqui in Washington

 

 

 

 

4928.jpg?w=700&q=55&auto=format&usm=12&fit=max&s=7aae4c09183b28d5cb6686d02b94d1da
Barack Obama warned of a ‘serious mistake’ in abandoning the deal
Photograph: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images
 
 
 

 

I would love to see an IQ test between Obama and Trump... That would be quite insightful... JMHO

 

B/A

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2 hours ago, bostonangler said:

 

I would love to see an IQ test between Obama and Trump... That would be quite insightful... JMHO

 

B/A

 

Obummer would get his stupid butt kicked. Hands down. Not even in the same league. Seriously.   Nuff said.  

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Obama put the Iran deal together with Kerry...he was looking for it to be a "legacy builder"....it was not deemed a "treaty", ...as  the House and Senate would have had to be in agreement....even Chuck Schmer was against the deal...what lunatic would give Iran pallets of cash...and then just accept them at their word on self inspecting the NUC sites....hello....are we talking jello for brains ??......Seems during this time Iran has built 4 warheads.....not as big as noko... still untested....look for a first test soon..so the Obama legacy will be he gave Iran $1.4 billion in cash, and allowed them to build warheads.....awesome...

 

sadly, probably just what he was trying to do...CL

 

 

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LONDON (Reuters) - Crude oil prices jumped back to 3-1/2-year highs on Wednesday after President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of an international nuclear deal with Iran, while the dollar continued its tireless ascent and world stocks held steady.

Trump's move sparked worries about fresh tension in the Middle East and uncertainty over global oil supplies. [O/R]

Demand for safe-haven assets remained limited, however, as the price of gold (XAU=) retreated and bond yields rose. The U.S. 10-year Treasury breached the key 3 percent level once more and was last at 3.0080 percent, a two-week high, supported by expectations of higher interest rates. =rr>

Caroline Simmons, deputy head of the UK chief investment office at UBS Wealth Management, said that while generally central banks tend to look through the oil price in terms of its impact on inflation, it is still of note to market watchers.

"In an environment where the Fed, particularly, is already at its inflation target and people are closely watching the pace of the monetary tightening, something like this which could possibly nudge inflation a little bit higher is going to be quite interesting for the market," Simmons said.

"That's why you're seeing the yields go up a little bit on the bonds."

The impact of Trump's decision remained broadly limited to oil markets and energy-related stocks. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures (CLc1) hit their highest level since November 2014 at $71.17 per barrel, up 2.8 percent.

Brent crude futures (LCOc1) jumped as much as 2.8 percent to a 3-1/2-year high of $77.20.

"There is still an interim period before sanctions kick in. And other signatories and Iran want to keep the deal going so there is a period where things could be hammered out," said Benjamin Schroeder, rates strategist at ING.

"But I would have expected a bit of a safe-haven bid this morning," he added, referring to bonds.

The MSCI world equity index <.MIWD00000PUS>, which tracks shares in 47 countries, was flat in percentage terms and continued to trade in a narrow range. The pan-European STOXX 600 (.STOXX) meanwhile rose 0.2 percent as oil majors gained and earnings from Siemens (SIEGn.DE) and Imperial Brands (IMB.L) dominated the market action.

"In the very short term, it looks as if the impact of heightened geopolitical worries was limited to oil markets. But that is not the end of the story," said Norihiro Fujito, senior investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities.

"U.S. sanctions could affect various industries. And tensions between Iran and Israel look set to intensify. Those will begin to cap share prices," he added.

The reaction in Asian markets was more pronounced as renewed U.S. sanctions on Tehran were seen as disruptive for many companies that have deals with Iran. Trump's move is also seen as likely to worsen already-tense relations between Iran and U.S. allies in the region.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan <.MIAPJ0000PUS> was flat, while Japan's Nikkei (.N225) fell 0.4 percent.

Iran, the third-biggest producer among the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, produces about 3.8 million barrels per day (bpd), or about 4 percent of the world's oil supplies.

The U.S. Treasury said it will reimpose a wide array of Iran-related sanctions after the expiry of 90- and 180-day wind-down periods, including those aimed at Iran's oil sector and transactions with its central bank.

 

DOLLAR STEAMS AHEAD

The rise in Treasury yields helped fuel the dollar's rally, with the greenback trading at a fresh high for 2018.

The dollar's index against a basket of major currencies (.DXY) was last up at 93.264, and has risen 1.2 percent so far this year.

Souring risk sentiment is hitting emerging markets, which have been clobbered in recent weeks by concerns about capital outflows, as the prospect of higher U.S. interest rates lures investors back to U.S. bonds rather than riskier assets.

Countries with high perceived political risks, such as Brazil and Turkey, were among the worst hit.

The Brazilian real hit a near two-year low (BRL=) and the Turkish lira (TRYTOM=D3) reached a record low. Since the start of this week, those currencies are both down around 1 percent.

 

The Indonesian rupiah hit a 2-1/2-year low (IDR=), and has slid 1 percent this week.

Among major currencies, the risk-sensitive Australian dollar hit an 11-month low of $0.74130 and last stood at $0.74315 (AUD=D4).

The euro continued to slide to a fresh 4-1/2-month low of $1.1821 and last stood at $1.1841 (EUR=), having declined more than 4 percent in the past three weeks.

The currency was hit by increasing prospects of another election in Italy as the political impasse there has continued since early March's inconclusive ballot.

The British pound (GBP=) stood at $1.3538, near a four-month low of $1.3482 touched on Tuesday.

The dollar rose 0.5 percent to 109.70 yen (JPY=), edging near its three-month high of 110.02 yen touched last week.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/oil-shines-shares-rattled-trump-012412170.html

 

 

I'm betting those oil companies are loving their new tax cut... How about you?

B/A

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Iran's leader lambasts Trump over US exit from nuclear deal

 

Conservatives in Iran seize on chance to consolidate power over reformists who championed pact

 

 

Wed 9 May 2018 09.28 BST

Saeed Kamali Dehghan Iran correspondent

 

 

 

 

Vid in link

 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/09/iranian-hardliners-rejoice-over-us-nuclear-deal-exit

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EU moves to protect European firms from US sanctions on Iran

 

Foreign ministers mull next steps, threatening to put Europe on economic collision course with US

 

Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor

Wed 9 May 2018 12.15 BST

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/09/eu-moves-to-protect-european-firms-from-us-sanctions-on-iran

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Europe's clash with Trump over Iran nuclear deal is a durability test

 

Tone struck by Britain, France and Germany will be critical to future transatlantic relations

 

Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor

Wed 9 May 2018 05.00 BST

 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/09/europes-clash-with-trump-over-iran-nuclear-deal-is-a-durability-test

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