Foreign Affairs

Iran Warns North Korea To Be ‘Vigilant’ In Its Dealings With Trump

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The Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Monday not to trust President Donald Trump.

“The US has a history of sabotage, violation and withdrawal with respect to bilateral and multilateral international commitments,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi explained Monday, adding, “With regard to the U.S. behaviors, especially Mr. Trump’s approach since the time he has been in office, Washington has continued to sabotage international agreements and unilaterally withdraw from them.”

“Tehran believes that the North Korean government should be quite vigilant as the US by nature could not be judged in an optimistic way,” he added.

North Korea and Iran are believed to have collaborated on ballistic missiles and nuclear weaponry, although the degree of cooperation is disputed and potentially exaggerated. Nonetheless, the two countries have maintained close ties over the years, and both countries have been a thorn in the side of the U.S., which desires to permanently curb their nuclear ambitions.

President Donald Trump infuriated the Iranians in early May when he withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), more commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal. Iran, like many of the president’s critics in the U.S., believes that withdrawing from the deal undermines American credibility and demonstrates that the U.S. is unable to negotiate in good faith.

The Trump administration, however, argues that pulling out of the deal signals to the world that the president will not tolerate bad deals and intends to follow through on his promises.

“America will not be held hostage to nuclear blackmail. We will not allow American cities to be threatened with destruction and we will not allow a regime that chants ‘death to America’ to gain access to the most deadly weapons on Earth,” Trump said when he announced America’s withdrawal from the Iran deal. “When I make promises, I keep them.”

Trump actually mentioned North Korea in his address.

“Today’s action sends a critical message. The United States no longer makes empty threats. When I make promises, I keep them,” he said, adding, “In fact, at this very moment, [Secretary of State Mike] Pompeo is on his way to North Korea in preparation for my upcoming meeting with Kim Jong Un.”

“Hopefully, a deal will happen,” the president told reporters.

White House national security adviser John Bolton said that Trump’s decision to withdraw from the JCPOA sent “a very clear signal that the United States will not accept inadequate deals,” meaning that North Korea will need to come to the table prepared to make meaningful concessions.

North Korea was critical of the Trump administration’s decision to pull out of the Iran deal, but it is unclear how much, if at all, the move affected Pyongyang’s strategic calculus ahead of the Trump-Kim summit. The two leaders are expected to meet Tuesday morning.

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