Trump places max pressure on Iran – Washington Examiner
President Donald Trump is expected to sign a memorandum on February 4,2025,aimed at expanding his “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran,a strategy he pursued during his first term. This declaration coincides with the visit of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, marking the first visit from a foreign leader in Trump’s second term.
The new memorandum will reinstate previous sanctions and introduce additional enforcement mechanisms to reduce Iran’s oil exports to zero. During the campaign, Trump criticized former President Joe Biden for his perceived leniency towards Iran, with indications that his management aims to quickly revert to his previous hardline policies against the nation.
In the backdrop of this policy shift is a report of a potential plot by the Iranian government to assassinate trump, which may drive his aggressive stance towards Iran. U.S. allies like the UK,France,and Germany have also expressed intentions to reinstate Trump-era sanctions.
Previously, Trump withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a deal negotiated under the Obama administration to limit Iran’s nuclear activities in exchange for concessions. Officials have noted that the Iranian regime is currently experiencing significant weakness,largely attributed to Trump’s prior policies.
Trump expected to sign memorandum expanding ‘maximum pressure’ campaign on Iran
President Donald Trump will reportedly sign a memorandum Tuesday expanding the “maximum pressure” campaign he waged against Iran during his first term in office.
The decision will take place the same day Trump hosts Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, the first foreign leader to visit during the president’s second term in office.
FULL LIST OF EXECUTIVE ORDERS, ACTIONS, AND PROCLAMATIONS TRUMP HAS MADE AS PRESIDENT
The Tuesday memorandum will reinstitute the sanctions Trump put in place during his first term, along with new enforcement mechanisms, to drive Iran’s oil exports down to “zero,” according to Reuters.
On the campaign trail, Trump frequently accused former President Joe Biden of taking a weak stance with Iran, and members of the 2024 transition team said the president planned to reinstate his past Iran policies shortly after entering office, including strict sanctions legislation aimed at crippling Iran’s economy in efforts to constrain its nuclear program and ballistic capabilities.
Mick Milroy, a former Trump Pentagon official, told the Wall Street Journal late last year that a plot by the Iranian government to assassinate Trump, uncovered during the Biden years, could be a driving factor behind the president’s plans for Iran.
“People tend to take that stuff personally,” Mulroy said. “If he’s going to be hawkish on any particular country, designated major adversaries, it’s Iran.”
U.S. allies, including the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, have indicated that they have plans to “snap-back” Trump-era sanctions on Tehran.
Trump’s previous directive coincided with his 2018 decision to withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, an agreement brokered by the Obama administration and Tehran to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for concessions.
At the time, Trump called the deal “one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into.”
Senior administration officials briefing reporters on Netanyahu’s visit to the White House said Tuesday morning that the two leaders would discuss plans for building on the Gaza ceasefire and promoting “regional normalization,” adding that the Gaza war significantly weakened Iran’s proxy forces throughout the Middle East.
“The Iranian regime is at its weakest point in decades,” one senior administration official said. “This would not have been possible had President Trump not been elected.”
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