U.S. Is Days Away From Reinstating Iran Sanctions. Here's What That Means: NPR

Roughly two days remain until the full measure of U.S. sanctions snap back against Iran. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters Friday that, come 12 a.m. AND Monday, the economic penalties leveled on the Iranian regime will return to levels unseen since the U.S. negotiated the 2015 multilateral nuclear deal.

The move is "aimed at depriving the regime of the recipes that it uses to spread death and destruction around the world," Pompeo said. "Our ultimate aim is to compel Iran to permanently abandon its well-documented outlaw activities and behave as a normal country."

Seen in broad strokes, the announcement Friday comes as no surprise.

Since May, when President Trump has unilaterally pulled the U.S. out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, his administration has telegraphed its intentions to restore the sanctions that had been lifted as part of the seven-country pact. The administration already leveled one major round of sanctions in August; now, it is restoring the complete set of sanctions – and even adding hundreds of names to the list, according to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

"The Treasury Department will add more than 700 names to our list of blocked entities," said Mnuchin, who joined Pompeo on Friday's conference call with reporters. "This includes the imposition of sanctions on JCPOA, which is substantially more than we have previously done."

That said, the Trump administration plans to grant temporary exceptions to yet-to-be-named "jurisdictions," which Pompeo says will get six-month waivers from U.S. penalties while they "wind down" their oil business with Iran.

With the snap-back, the Trump

What is Monday?
Why is the U.S. offering waivers to certain countries?
What's the trump administration's goal?
How is Iran reacting?
What's going on with the Iran nuclear deal now?

What is Monday?

As part of the 2015 nuclear deal the Obama administration lifted a host of sanctions at the Iranian economy. The move came as a relief to Iran, nowhere more than in its oil and banking sectors: Iranian tankers ounces gained more access to European and Asian markets, and the country gained $ 100 billion in badets that had been frozen overseas.

When Trump's administration re-implemented the first major round of sanctions this year, it was called Iranian metals, as it was its automotive and airline industries. But Iran's oil and banking sectors are expected to see the biggest impact of sanctions – and those are precisely Monday's targeting.

The White House says it's going after major oil exporters, shipping companies and major Iranian banks – including the country's Central Bank and other financial institutions. And it will also be the target of the circumvent [the sanctions]. "

"Pompeo explained Friday." One hundred percent of the income that Iran will receive from the world of oil and gasoline, "Pompeo explained Friday.

The additional penalties are intended to "cut off the bankruptcy," and "foment global instability, fund nuclear and ballistic missile programs, and enrich its leaders."

Not all trade with Iran will be off limits, however.

The White House plans to continue to supply food products to Iran – such as food, medicine and raw agriculture products. The U.N.'s top notch last month that the U.S. can not apply sanctions to those in Iran.

Why is the U.S. offering waivers to certain countries?

Ideally, the White House wants all of its trading partners to cut off all their oil purchases from Iran. In reality, even if a country wishes to fully comply with that demand, it will take some time to seek out alternative suppliers of such a crucial resource.

As Reuters reports, some of Iran's top sellers – including China and Turkey – are pushing back against the US order, saying that they are not enough oil supplies elsewhere to meet their demand.

So, the Trump administration states that it is proposing a temporary reprieve – but "only because they have made significant reductions in their crude oil imports and imports," Pompeo added Friday.

He noted that the two of them have finally agreed to behave in the future.

Pompeo declined to identify the eight "jurisdictions" getting waivers, though he clarified that the full European Union would not be one of them. He said the list would be released Monday when the sanctions were re-implemented.

What's the trump administration's goal?

First and foremost, the goal is to keep the Iranian government from getting cash.

Pompeo calls it a "maximum-pressure" campaign, intended to ensure Iran does not have the funds to support the U.S. views as destabilizing influences in the Middle East. That includes the Lebanon-based Islamist militant group Hezbollah; the Houthi rebels in Yemen; and Syrian President Bashar Assad.

And ultimately, the White House hopes to force Iran to return to the negotiating table to forge a new nuclear deal. Trump is willing to meet with Iran in the United States.

The administration says the buildup to the sanctions has already deprived Iran of some $ 2 billion over the last several months and that the Iranian economy is in crisis. Pompeo was careful to note, however, that Washington's actions "are targeted at the regime, not the people of Iran."

The United States says it is not going to the Iranian regime, but it has been encouraged Iranians to protest against their government and demanded "enormous change." That could lead to widespread unrest or even tough crackdown by Iranian leaders.

How is Iran reacting?

Of course, no one has been more critical of the sanctions than Iran's leadership.

"Unfortunately, the Iranian President Hbadan Rouhani wrote in the Financial Times," The Iranian President Hasan Rouhani wrote in the Financial Times on Thursday.

And he referred to United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorsed the nuclear deal not long after its finalization in 2015.

"The US is, in effect, threatening states that seek to abide by resolution 2231 with punitive measures," Rouhani added. "This being a mockery of international decisions and the blackmailing of responsible parties who seek to uphold them."

On Friday, the Iranian Foreign Ministry looks to the air of confidence and disdain for the U.S. decision.

"Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi told state media, according to Reuters. "We have the knowledge and the ability to manage the country's economic affairs."

Part of that confidence stems from the fact that only the U.S. has withdrawn from the deal. The rest of the seven signatories remain committed to it – which brings one final question …

What's going on with the Iran nuclear deal now?

Iran signed the deal in 2015 with the U.S., the U.K., France, Germany, Russia, China and Germany, and the U.N. Security Council endorsed it not long afterward. To this point, the U.S. is the only party to drop out of the multilateral agreement.

That's partly because of the International Atomic Energy Agency, whose inspectors have overseen the destruction of Iran's equipment for producing nuclear fuel, which has repeatedly been said to be in compliance with the terms of the deal.

Despite the White House 's objections to the deal – it' s not quite enough that it would expire in a decade – many badysts have baderted that it 's all about Iran.

The agreement "is working and delivering on its goal," representatives for the EU, France, Germany and the U.K. said in a joint statement released Friday.

"We are committed to implementing the JCPoA as a matter of international agreements, and expect Iran to play a constructive role in this regard."

Still, the new U.S. sanctions will make it much harder for Iran to get money, and that was Iran's main incentive to sign the deal. Other countries that still support the warn that if Iran sees declining benefits, it could kick out the IAEA and ramp up its nuclear program again.