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US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the United States may pursue the de-nuclearisation of Iran without any formal agreement while accusing Tehran of repeatedly violating commitments made during negotiations.
Trump made the remarks during his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the 2026 NATO Summit in Ankara, where he criticised the previous nuclear agreement with Iran, which was agreed upon during the Obama administration and contrasted it with his own proposed approach. "JCPOA, what a terrible deal. I call it the Obama nuclear waste deal. What he did with that deal is he caused tremendous hardship in the Middle East. It was a terrible, terrible thing to do. And we've been just the opposite. Our deal is a wall to a nuclear weapon. His deal was a road to a nuclear weapon. We couldn't," Trump said. "They'll never build a nuclear weapon under our deal. But I don't know if we're going to have a deal. We may just do it without a deal because, you know what, It's easier because these people, they lie and they cheat and you have an agreement and they'll go outside," he added. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was negotiated and finalised in July 2015, which imposes strict, verifiable restrictions on Iran's nuclear programme in return for relief from economic sanctions. Trump has been a critic of the JCPOA and withdrew the United States from the agreement in 2018, arguing that it did not sufficiently prevent Iran from developing nuclear capabilities. Prior to his remarks, Trump earlier today announced that the ceasefire agreement with Iran has effectively concluded for him, declaring that he no longer wishes to engage in diplomatic dealings with Tehran. Trump categorically stated that the peace process was over and he would not deal with Iran any longer. "To me, I think it's over. I don't want to deal with them anymore. They're scum... They're led by sick people... I'll speak to our negotiators. They want to negotiate - they're good people... but they have to come back to me. As far as I'm concerned, it's just a waste of time dealing with them," he said. Trump, during his meeting with Zelenskyy, further accused Iranian leaders of publicly agreeing to restrictions on their nuclear programme while later denying or disputing the discussions. "For instance, they agreed, well, we'll never have a nuclear weapon. They agreed. Then they go outside, they have a news conference or they leak that we never discuss the subject," he said. (ANI)
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