On Tuesday, May 8, 2018, President Donald Trump announced his plans to withdraw the United States from the widely controversial Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. The Iran nuclear deal was created on July 14, 2015 and officially implemented on January 16, 2016.

The Iran deal is an agreement regarding Iran’s nuclear program between Iran, the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, which is headed by the United States, and the European Union. Iran agreed to eliminate its enriched uranium almost entirely and will only enrich it up to 3.67% in one heavily monitored facilitated. They will also refrain from constructing any new heavy-water facilities in the next 13 years. People were skeptical of the Iran deal because they wondered how a country who yells “Death to America!” could possibly want to work with a country they despise. They were understandably apprehensive in believing Iran would completely shut down its nuclear program and it appears they were right to be. On April 30, 2018, the United States and Israel announced a clear violation of the deal and claimed the Iranian regime had not disclosed a previous covert nuclear weapons program to the International Atomic Energy Agency. The demise of the Iran nuclear deal was inevitably approaching with this announcement and it came just over a week later.

President Barack Obama was instrumental in achieving this agreement and most Democrats would claim this feat was a major part of his legacy. Republicans, however, including President Trump, have been quite critical of the 44th president and argue against what they view as a ridiculous deal granting a terrorist nation more freedom than they deserve. During the announcement of the withdrawal from the deal, President Trump explained how “the United States no longer makes empty threats.” The United States will now reestablish even stricter sanctions on Iran and will likely penalize Iran for their apparent violation of the agreement.

The Iran nuclear deal “didn’t bring peace” as it was supposed to, according to President Trump. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has praised the United States for their decision; however, the other nations involved in the agreement have remained committed to the deal and will not abandon it. The United States is facing serious opposition with the United Nations Security Council and only the next few months will determine whether this choice will lead to peace or war.