Europe's gamble: Can it save Iran deal by threatening to kill it?

Press quote (The New York Times)
16 January 2020

It is hard to see those around Mr. Trump, who have opposed the nuclear deal and supported his maximum pressure campaign, granting Iran any concession to get talks started, said Ian Bond, director of foreign policy at the Centre for European Reform. ...“I think the attack on Suleimani will make the Iranians want to accelerate their nuclear program,’’ Mr. Bond said. “They’ve seen Kim Jong-un and the lesson from Trump, which is if you have nuclear weapons you can get love letters from the president, and if you don’t, your generals can get killed.’’

...Mr. Bond said Russia was happy to be aligned with the Europeans on at least this issue, and has benefited from Europe’s split on Iran with the United States. And Moscow, which is a party to the nuclear deal, has made clear it does not want a nuclear-armed Iran.