WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump on Friday angrily accused Iran of violating the spirit of the landmark 2015 nuclear deal, accusing it of a long list of malign behavior and hitting its main military wing with terrorism sanctions. But Trump, breaking with a campaign pledge to rip up the agreement, said he was not yet ready to pull the U.S. out or re-impose nuclear sanctions.
Instead, he kicked the issue to Congress and the other parties to the seven-nation accord, telling lawmakers to toughen the law that governs U.S. participation and to fix a series of deficiencies in the agreement. Those include the expiration of several key restrictions under "sunset provisions" that begin to kick in in 2025, he said.
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Trump warned that without the fixes, he would likely pull the U.S. out of the deal and snap previously lifted sanctions back into place.
Without improvements, he said in a White House speech, "the agreement will be terminated."
"It is under continuous review and our participation can be canceled by me as president at any time," he said.
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