US scraps Iran civil nuclear waiver for Iran as relations continue to deteriorate

Pompeo said he is cancellng one of four sanction waivers that allowed foreign companies to work with Iran.

3 min read

19 November, 2019

Iran's nuclear programme has caused controversy [Getty]

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Monday he is canceling one of four sanctions waivers that had allowed foreign companies to work with Iran's civilian nuclear programme without US penalties.

The waivers are among the last remaining components of the 2015 nuclear deal the Trump administration withdrew from last year.

Pompeo said the waiver for Iran's once-secret Fordow site will be eliminated 15 December after Tehran recently announced it would resume uranium enrichment at the fortified facility, which is built into a mountain.

"The right amount of uranium enrichment for the world's largest state sponsor of terrorism is zero," he said.

"There is no legitimate reason for Iran to resume enrichment at this previously clandestine site. Iran should reverse its activity there immediately."

Iran hawks in Congress have been pressing Pompeo to eliminate all the waivers but have most strenuously objected to the one that allowed Russian, Chinese and European companies to work at Fordow.

— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) November 11, 2019 " style="color:#fff;" class="twitter-post-link" target="_blank">Twitter Post

.@HassanRouhani’s best pitch for IRAN staying in the disastrous Iran deal is that it lets the Islamic kleptocrats that lead that country buy and sell drones, missiles, tanks, jets, and more. He will get his wish, unless UNSC extends the arms embargo before it expires 10/18/20.
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) November 11, 2019

The waivers for Fordow as well as the Bushehr nuclear power station, the Arak heavy water plant and the Tehran Research Reactor were last extended in late October.

Nuclear deal critics, including Trump allies like Republican Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Tom Cotton of Arkansas and GOP Rep.

Liz Cheney of Wyoming, have long argued that the waivers should be revoked because they give Iran access to technology that could be used for weapons.

In particular, they have targeted a waiver that allows conversion work at the once-secret Fordow.

They had announced plans to introduce legislation requiring the administration to cancel the waivers.

Deal supporters say the waivers give international experts a valuable window into Iran's atomic programme that might otherwise not exist.

They also say some of the work, particularly at the Tehran reactor on nuclear isotopes that can be used in medicine, is humanitarian in nature.

Meanwhile, Pompeo warned Iran's leadership not to crack down on protests that recent fuel price increases have sparked.

The protests around Iran have led to a curtailment in Iranians' internet access, and some of them have been met with violent responses.

Pompeo said Iran "must cease violence against its own people and must immediately restore the ability of all Iranians to access a free and open internet. The world is watching".