-Counting down, in 10 days time, we'll overpass of course --
-On June 17th, Iran began a 10-day countdown.
-The Iranians say that within 10 days
they will surpass that uranium-enrichment limit
laid out in the Iran nuclear deal.
-Unless Europeans provide relief from crippling sanctions.
-Since President Trump pulled the United States
out of the landmark 2015 Iran nuclear deal on May 8, 2018 --
-We cannot prevent an Iranian nuclear bomb
under the decaying and rotten structure
of the current agreement.
-Tensions between the two countries
have gradually ratcheted up.
Six countries in the European Union
signed the nuclear deal with Iran in 2015,
following years of difficult negotiations.
Iran agreed to accept tighter restrictions
on its nuclear program
and to allow UN inspectors more access to its facilities.
The deal was aimed at keeping Iran at least one year away
from having enough material to produce one nuclear bomb
and put in place inspections that could detect any efforts
to create a bomb almost immediately.
In return, all sanctions
related to Iran's nuclear program were lifted.
-That is why we must put an end
to Iran's continued aggression and nuclear ambitions.
They have not lived up to the spirt of their agreement.
-I think President Trump's withdrawal from the nuclear deal
in 2018 was the original sin.
For a year after President Trump withdrew
from the 2015 nuclear deal,
the Iranians implemented a maximum-patience policy.
-We have exercised maximum restraint, as you pointed out,
in spite of the fact that the United States
withdrew from JCPOA.
-The remained in the deal, and they respected all of the limits
that the deal imposed on their nuclear program.
-But since the US withdrawal,
re-imposed sanctions have crippled Iran's economy.
-The Iranians are losing patience,
and for this reason the Iranians have decided
to no longer respect the limits on the heavy water material,
as well as low-enriched uranium.
-The 10th day, we will of course
surpass this level of 300 kilograms.
-So, what does this actually mean?
-Uranium is the material
that is used for fueling nuclear reactors and nuclear bombs.
-Enriching uranium is the process
of separating uranium-235,
a fissile isotope that makes up less than 1%
of natural uranium,
from the more common uranium-238.
The concentration of U-235
is then increased by removing the unwanted isotopes.
-If it's enriched to a low level,
around 3% or at max 20%,
it's used for civilian nuclear reactors.
If it's enriched to 90%,
it can be used for nuclear weapons.
The Iranians have committed under the nuclear deal
to limit the enrichment level to 3.67%
so it's ensured that it would be for civilian use.
-The first limit that they say that they're going to exceed
is the 300-kilogram limit on low-enriched uranium.
That by itself is not a near-term proliferation threat.
It takes some 1,200 kilograms of low-enriched uranium,
if further enriched,
to produce enough material for just one nuclear device.
So, they're still a long way from having that quantity
and even further away from having the bomb.
But this is a violation nonetheless,
and it's very worrisome.
-Iran's leaders insist
they do not want, have, or need nuclear weapons.
And written into the 2015 deal was a permanent restriction
on any efforts from Iran
to develop or acquire nuclear weapons.
-Iran is not necessarily racing towards the bomb today.
-These are cleverly chosen measures
because the US removed the waivers
that allowed other countries to export
the excess of this material from Iran.
But these are measure that are also easily reversible.
-It is trying to create political leverage
to encourage European countries
that are part of the Iran nuclear deal,
China, and even Russia
to help Iran secure the economic benefits it was promised
in exchange for meeting these stricter nuclear limits.
-But the trouble here is,
all of these countries have their own horse trading
and complicated relations with the US,
and so they use the Iran card as part of the larger calculations
that they have in their relations
with the United States.
-European companies will not be permitted
to do business with both the United States and with Iran.
-Today we sanctioned more than 700 individuals,
entities, aircraft, and vessels
as part of Treasury's
largest-ever single-day action targeting Iran.
-In a few moments, I'll be signing an executive order
imposing hard-hitting sanctions on the Supreme Leader of Iran
and the Office of the Supreme Leader of Iran
and many others.
-The maximum-pressure strategy of the Trump administration
by imposing a wide array of strangulating sanctions
on the Iranians have been quite effective,
and the economic situation inside the country
is really dire.
There are Iranian families
who haven't been able to eat meat for months now.
I think the Iranians have now come to the conclusion
that there might be a second Trump term,
and so although their economic situation
might be sustainable in the short term,
it is not in the medium to long run.
-The United States is the most sinister government
in the world.
It has been a cause of war, bloodshed, and division.
-You proved to the world yourselves
that you are unreliable, break any agreement,
and that you do not stick to your signatures.
How do you expect us
to negotiation with you all over again?
-Look, pressure without an open door
is an exercise in futility.
-Iran and the United States governments
are on a collision course.
Each country's policies
are headed towards greater and great confrontation.
-So, the only way of avoiding a conflict at this point,
I think, is a freeze,
is for both sides to realize
that the trajectory that they're on now
will result in a catastrophic confrontation
for themselves and for the region.