Trump's UN Envoy: Iran Deal 'Designed to Be Too Big to Fail'

If U.S. President Donald Trump tells Congress in October that Iran is not complying with a nuclear deal it agreed with world powers, that does not mean Washington is withdrawing from the agreement, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on Tuesday.

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Haley told the American Enterprise Institute think tank in Washington that the Iran nuclear deal was "designed to be too big to fail" and Iran's leaders were using it to "hold the world hostage to its bad behavior."

She described the nuclear deal as "a very flawed and very limited agreement," which Iran has violated multiple times.

During the presidential election last year, Donald Trump vowed to "rip" the Iran deal upon entering office, a pledge repeated by his running mate, Vice President Mike Pence. However, two years after the signing of the agreement, the administration has avoided taking that step and has chosen to leave the agreement in place.

In July, for the second time since entering office, Trump certified Iran's compliance with the nuclear deal, something he is required to do every 90 days, in order to stop Congress from re-enforcing the nuclear-related sanctions on the Islamic Republic.