Iranians hold rallies to condemn US nuclear deal pullout

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Iranians held rallies on Friday to condemn the US withdrawal from the 2015 international nuclear deal.

In the capital Tehran, thousands of people marched on the streets after Friday prayers, chanting slogans criticizing the US and its president, Donald Trump.

They carried placards with the iconic decades-long Iranians' protest language of "Death to America."

Iranians burn a US flag during a protest against US President Donald Trump's decision to walk out of a 2015 nuclear deal, in Tehran, Iran, May 11, 2018. /Reuters Photo

They also shouted slogans against Israel and Saudi Arabia, who, they believed, sympathized with US President Trump's anti-Iran rhetoric.

The protesters issued a statement saying they vow to withstand US pressures and adhere ardently to the ideals of the Islamic establishment.

On Tuesday, Trump announced US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, saying that Washington will not extend the waiver for the unilateral sanctions against Iran.

The move by the US president sparked international discontent.

More: US sanctions 9 Iranian individuals, entities over currency exchange network

Iranians hold anti-US placards and shout slogans during a demonstration after Friday prayer in the capital Tehran, May 11, 2018. /VCG Photo

Response from Iranian government

Iran said it would remain committed to the deal without Washington if Tehran achieved its goals – namely being protected from sanctions against key sectors of its economy such as oil – in cooperation with other countries that have signed up to the agreement.

State media reported that Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has embarked on a tour of world powers on Saturday. Many view it as a last-ditch effort to save Tehran’s nuclear deal after Washington’s withdrawal from the accord.

President Hassan Rouhani said he had asked the foreign minister to negotiate with European countries, China and Russia in the coming weeks. “If at the end of this short period we conclude that we can fully benefit from the nuclear accord ..., the deal would remain,” he said.

A handout picture provided by the Iranian presidency on May 8, 2018 shows President Hassan Rouhani giving a speech on Iranian TV in Tehran. /VCG Photo

Zarif is due to leave for Beijing on Saturday and will later travel to Russia. He will then go to Brussels to meet counterparts from Germany, Britain and France “about the fate of the nuclear deal,” Iranian state television said.

“Iran has asked the European Union and particularly Germany, France and Britain to announce as soon as possible their stand on how Iran’s interests can be fulfilled and guaranteed under the nuclear agreement after America’s withdrawal,” the TV report said.

Read more: Macron, Rouhani agree to work to save Iran nuclear deal

Read more: Opinion: Why is Europe sticking to the Iran nuclear deal?

Europe’s largest economies lobbied to protect their companies’ investments in Iran on Friday, seeking to keep the nuclear deal with Tehran alive after Washington pulled out and threatened to impose sanctions on European companies.

Germany and France have significant trade links with Iran and remain committed to the nuclear agreement, as does Britain, and the three countries’ foreign ministers plan to meet on Tuesday to discuss it.

That is part of a flurry of diplomatic activity following Trump’s unilateral withdrawal from what he called “a horrible, one-sided deal,” a move accompanied by the threat of penalties against any foreign firms doing business in Iran.