As French President Emmanuel Macron arrives in Washington, a top priority will be convincing his American counterpart to stay within the landmark nuclear agreement with Iran.

But judging from this analyst’s conversations with Iranian diplomats in Europe and New York over the past week, Macron and his colleagues in Germany and Britain may have an equally crucial task persuading Iran to remain within the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) if US President Donald J. Trump fails to reissue waivers of US sanctions on the next deadline, May 12.

Despite all the attention paid to the US-Iran aspect of the nuclear issue, Iran’s main expectation upon signing the JCPOA was that it would be able to restore and increase economic relations with Europe, traditionally Iran’s major trading partner.

Article in New Atlanticist Here

Barbara Slavin is director of the Future of Iran Initiative at the Atlantic Council. Follow her on Twitter @barbaraslavin1.

Image: Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said that European officials should try to convince US President Donald J. Trump to “live up to [US] commitments” under the nuclear deal with Iran. (Reuters/Francois Lenoir)