French President Emmanuel Macron warned on Sunday that war could ensue if U.S. President Donald Trump withdraws from the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, Reuters reported.
“We would open the Pandora’s box. There could be war,” Macron was quoted as having told German weekly magazine Der Spiegel.
At the same time he added, “I don’t think that Donald Trump wants war.”
Trump has imposed a May 12 deadline to reimpose sanctions on Iran unless the flaws in the existing agreement are fixed.
Macron, who has been leading an effort by France, Britain and Germany to find those "fixes" to the deal that would satisfy Trump's objections, met Trump at the White House late last month.
Britain, France and Germany remain committed to the accord but, in an effort to keep Washington in it, want to open talks on Iran’s ballistic missile program, its nuclear activities beyond 2025 - when key provisions of the deal expire - and its role in Middle East crises such as Syria and Yemen.
Iranian leaders have stressed that they will not accept any changes to the deal and that it is not negotiable in their view.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif recently said that if the United States withdraws from the 2015 nuclear deal, his country will likely do so as well.
