President Donald Trump announced on May 8 that the United States would withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal negotiated by President Barack Obama, as well as establish trade sanctions. He did so despite receiving unanimous advice to remain part of the agreement from the other signatories to the deal: Iran, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the United Kingdom. Trump also disregarded information supplied by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats that Iran was following the commitments it made under the deal. Middle Eastern foes of Iran — Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Israel — applauded the withdrawal.
“One of Trump’s objections to the deal was that Iran’s nuclear program would no longer be curbed after 2030,” said Libertarian National Committee Chair Nicholas Sarwark. “Withdrawing from the deal now means that Iran’s nuclear program is effectively no longer curbed starting now. That’s letting the perfect be the enemy of the good. When the administration abandons diplomacy and threatens other countries with sanctions, it leads us closer to war. Free trade and movement of people between countries leads us closer to peace. These sanctions will not only hurt Iran and make them less likely to come to the table for further negotiations, they will also hurt our allies who are also signatories to the Iran agreement.”
Trump indicated that sanctions against purchase of Iranian oil and secondary sanctions against the Bank of Tehran will be reinstated. In addition, other countries, including our allies, will face restrictions on use of the American banking system if they continue trade with Iran at current levels. Furthermore, Trump has told the Treasury Department to come up with other even more severe sanctions. Making Iranian oil more difficult to market will probably lead to higher global oil prices — and higher prices at the pump for gasoline.
Neither Republicans nor Democrats can be counted upon to refrain from using sanctions, a form of trade war that impoverishes all sides. Only Libertarians can be relied upon to maintain free trade, which facilitates both peace and prosperity between countries. Only Libertarians can be counted upon to resort to war exclusively for defensive purposes. To that end, the Libertarian Party is aiming to field more than 2,000 candidates for federal, state, and local office in 2018.
