On Feb. 4, President Donald Trump signed a National Presidential Security Memorandum/NSPM-2 announcing that his government will impose a “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran, defined as the world’s “leading supporter of state-sponsored terrorism.” In tough language, the Memorandum vows to deny Iran “all paths to a nuclear weapon” and counter its “malign influence,” enumerating a list of crimes it claims that country has committed. These range from terrorism, cybercrimes, gross human rights violations, including murder and kidnapping, sponsoring other terrorist groups, etc. Iran’s nuclear program constitutes “an existential danger to the United States and the entire civilized world,” the document warns, and because Iran threatens the United States, “it is in the interest of the United States to end its nuclear threat.”
The NSPM-2 outlines several measures the U.S. intends to take, through the Treasury, Commerce, and other Executive government departments and agencies, to impose a “robust and continual sanctions campaign with respect to Iran” to deny revenue to it and “its terror proxies.” It promises to wage a diplomatic campaign to “isolate Iran throughout the world, including in international organizations,” and “to drive Iran’s export of oil to zero, including exports of Iranian crude to the People’s Republic of China.”
It is notable, however, that after signing such a threatening document, President Trump made remarks contradicting its message, indicating that he sincerely felt “torn” about implementing it, and expressed the hope that something could be negotiated with Iran before the terms of the Memorandum would have to be imposed. He said he’d even like to negotiate something with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
