At a briefing to reporters at the State Department, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the Trump administration continues to evaluate the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the nuclear deal with Iran known as the JCPOA:
“In particular we’re working with the other parties to that agreement, our European allies in particular, to ensure that we are fully enforcing all aspects of that agreement, holding Iran accountable for its commitments, and challenging whether Iran is, in fact, living up to its commitments and the spirit of that agreement.”
Iran is continuing to engage in destabilizing behavior in the region, however, and Secretary Tillerson emphasized that the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran is just one of many threats posed by the Islamic Republic:
"Whether it be their ongoing ballistic missile programs, their export of terrorism, their export of instability in Yemen, their export of foreign fighters into Iraq and Syria.”
Secretary of State Tillerson said Iran’s leaders “are persistent in their efforts to exert their influence across the Middle East, and it is our intent, working with our allies in the region to push back on Iran’s expansionist efforts to destabilize areas.”
Such push back, Secretary Tillerson said, “is consistent with our efforts to stop Islamic extremism in all its forms.” In support of that goal, the United States will continue its “proactive approach…to preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons…and from fomenting terrorism and building influence outside of [its] borders.”
