16 Donald Trump’s Victory Is Shuffling the Cards in Tehran Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential elections has ratcheted up anxiety in Iran that the president-elect will instantly resume his wellknown policy of “maximum pressure” on Iran via tough economic and commercial sanctions. Iran’s Vice President for Strategic Affairs Muhammad Javad Zarif was quoted on November 9 as suggesting that Trump do a cost-benefit analysis on his “maximum pressure” policy to decide whether it is worth continuing. He recalled that Trump’s previous standpoint vis-à-vis Iran led Tehran to increase uranium enrichment to 60% purity, which is practically the grade of fissile material needed for nuclear devices. In a communique on November 7, Iran’s Foreign Ministry expressed the hope that Trump’s election Col. (res.) Dr. Raphael G. Bouchnik-Chen is a senior research fellow at the BESA Center. He specializes in Middle Eastern and international strategic affairs. Photo: Shutterstock
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