Iran’s Rouhani Promises Not to Allow Trump to Undo Nuclear Deal

In a speech on Tuesday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Iran would not allow President-elect Donald Trump to scrap the nuclear deal as he said he would during his campaign.

Rouhani said Trump “wants to do many things, but none of his actions would affect us” in a speech at the University of Tehran, carried live on Iranian state television.

“Do you think he can rip up the JCPOA? Do you think we and our nation will let him do that?” Rouhani said, according to a Reuters report. JCPOA stands for “Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action,” the formal name of the Iran nuclear deal.

NBC News notes the Iranian president pointedly refused to say Trump’s name during the speech, referring to him as “some man… elected in the U.S.”

Rouhani also criticized Congress’s vote to extend the Iran Sanctions Act for another 10 years, a bill President Obama is expected to sign.

“There is no doubt that the United States is our enemy. If Obama signs ISA but uses waiver rights to cease its implementation, it still infringes the nuclear agreement and we will react to it,” said Rouhani, who is the great “moderate” hope of Iran, according to the Obama administration.

In an address to the Iranian parliament on Sunday, Rouhani said it would be “a blatant violation of the Iran deal, and it will lead to our ultimate answer” if Obama signs the ISA extension. The parliament broke into chants of “Death to America!” as he was speaking.

Iran received some support from China, whose Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, said the nuclear deal should “not be affected by any changes in the domestic situations of the countries concerned.”

“What is important is to honor commitments and place emphasis on good faith when it comes to differences or possible differences,” said Wang, as quoted by AFP.

Wang spoke at a press conference after meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who declared that Iran “will not allow any party to unilaterally undertake any actions that are in violation of the nuclear agreement.”

As for Iran’s relationship with China, Zarif said it had “no reservation and no ceiling,” because Tehran and Beijing “share common principles and a common agenda for the future of the global system.”