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September 15, 2024

Biden fails to restore Iran nuclear deal after Trump's withdrawal

Foreign Policy
Axios
Responsible Statecraft
Arms Control Association
CNBC
+4

Revival efforts collapsed as nuclear advances killed diplomatic chances

President Joe Biden required Iran to return to full JCPOA compliance before the U.S. would lift sanctions, reversing the original simultaneous compliance-for-sanctions relief approach (Responsible Statecraft; CNBC Analysis).

During Biden’s term, Iran’s uranium stockpile grew from 202 kg to 4 745 kg and Iran enriched uranium to 60% purity—just below weapons-grade levels—by the time he left office (Arms Control Center; Bulletin of Atomic Scientists).

On October 7, 2023, the Hamas attack on Israel, which Iran supported, effectively ended any remaining efforts to revive the JCPOA (Bulletin of Atomic Scientists; Axios Timeline).

🛡️National Security📋Public Policy🌍Foreign Policy

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Q1

Biden continued Trump's "maximum pressure" sanctions on Iran.

Q2

When did formal JCPOA revival negotiations begin?

Q3

Iran's uranium stockpile decreased during Biden's presidency.

Q4

Biden imposed new sanctions on Iran during his presidency.

Q5

What was Biden's initial position on returning to the JCPOA?

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What you can do

1

Download the IAEA’s quarterly safeguards reports at https://www.iaea.org/resources/databases/iaea-nuclear-materials to verify uranium stockpile and enrichment levels.

2

Review the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Iran sanctions page at https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/office-of-foreign-assets-control-sanctions-programs-and-country-information/iran-sanctions for up-to-date sanctions listings.

3

Access archived National Security Council press releases, including the February 2023 statement on the JCPOA, at https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/ to trace official U.S. policy shifts.