Trump is beating up on Iran — and it's making Obama look weak

pulse

September 21, 2018 12:16 PM

President Donald Trump has, at almost every turn, defied experts on Iran policy to take a very aggressive track against Tehran and has yet to suffer a single tangible consequence. The nightmare scenarios former President Barack Obama warned against have not come to pass.

Donald Trump and Iran's president Hassan Rouhani.

President Donald Trump has, at almost every turn, defied experts on Iran policy to take a very aggressive track against Tehran.

Despite this, Trump has yet to suffer a single tangible consequence, or any of the nightmare scenarios which former President Barack Obama warned against.

Under Trump, the US has withdrawn from the Iran deal, which Obama officials warned could send the country sprinting towards a nuclear weapon. Iran remains in compliance with the deal today.

Trump's White House will sanction Iran's oil exports in November, and despite warnings of oil prices spiking or European firms picking Tehran over Washington, oil prices are steady and even Iran's long-time client, India, has cut ties.

Despite the pain Iran took from Trump's sanctions, experts contacted by Business Insider expect it to remain in the deal. They said the country has very few remaining economic lifelines, and publicly breaching the deal to go nuclear could snuff out the remaining embers.

The US military in Syria has repeatedly and stiffly beaten back Iranian and Iranian-linked forces when challenged.

Under Obama, the US sought to give Iran a wide berth in Syria as it worked behind the scenes to get the Iran deal done. In the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway outside Iran, Iranian ships would frequently harass and threaten US Navy ships. Under Trump, Iran has stopped these provocations.

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