“We’re doing our best, and we hope that this will be enough,” Ms. Mogherini said in defending the Instex system, adding that the first transactions were being processed. Despite the renewed sanctions, Iran complied with its commitments under the nuclear deal for a year after Mr. Trump’s withdrawal. Iran warned that it would stop complying with the deal’s cap on its enriched uranium stockpile unless the Europeans made good on their promises, and then said that it would exceed the pact’s restrictions on how highly enriched the uranium could be. In each case, the European countries were unable to deliver, and Iran surpassed the limits this month. In May and June, six tankers were damaged near the Strait of Hormuz, the vital waterway that carries much of the world’s oil, and American officials said the ships had been attacked by Iran.

Source: International New York Times July 15, 2019 13:54 UTC