On Friday, President Donald Trump announced his intention to adopt a more hardline approach to the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal. In declining to certify Iran’s compliance with the agreement, Trump has effectively shifted responsibility to Congress, which will have 60 days to determine the future of the accord.
Florida State University Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Political Science Mark Souva is available to discuss the political calculus and potential consequences of Trump’s decision to decertify the Iran Nuclear Deal.
Mark Souva, professor and director of graduate studies, Department of Political Science:
(850) 644-7315; msouva@fsu.edu
Souva’s areas of interest include the interplay of domestic institutions and foreign policy, liberal peace, economic sanctions and international security affairs. His research has been published in the Journal of Conflict Resolution, International Interactions and International Studies Quarterly among other publications.
“President Trump’s decertification of the Iran deal is being made for domestic political reasons, not international security. Indeed, the administration’s charge is that Iran is violating the ‘spirit’ of the deal. It acknowledges that there are not any actual violations. If Congress and the president make changes to the deal, these changes will increase Iran’s efforts to acquire nuclear weapon capabilities. In addition, these changes will make a deal with North Korea less likely and decrease the willingness of others to trust the United States.”