President Donald Trump of the United States will on Tuesday sign a presidential memorandum to restore his maximum pressure campaign on Iran.
According to a US official, the move is to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. The move also seeks to drive down Iran’s oil exports to zero.
The move brings back the tough US policy on Iran that Trump, a Republican, practiced throughout his first term.
Trump has accused his Democratic predecessor, former President Joe Biden, of weakening U.S. resolve toward Iran.
The tougher approach came as Trump prepared to hold talks, opens new tab later on Tuesday with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The official said that Trump’s directive orders the US Treasury secretary to impose maximum economic pressure on Iran, including sanctions and enforcement mechanisms on those violating existing sanctions.
According to the official, as part of the maximum pressure effort, the Trump administration will implement a campaign aimed at driving Iran’s oil exports to zero.
US Energy Information Administration estimates state that Tehran’s oil exports brought in $53 billion in 2023 and $54 billion a year earlier, and output during 2024 was running at its highest since 2018, based on OPEC data.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The official added that the US ambassador to the United Nations will work with key allies to complete the snapback of international sanctions and restrictions on Iran.
Trump’s first-term maximum pressure campaign sought to use vigorous sanctions to strangle Iran’s economy and force the country to negotiate a deal that would hobble its nuclear and ballistic weapons programs.
The Biden administration did not materially loosen the sanctions that Trump put in place, but there is debate about how vigorously the sanctions were enforced.
Britain, France and Germany told the United Nations Security Council in December that they are ready – if necessary – to trigger a so-called snap back of all international sanctions on Iran to prevent the country from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
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