Why it matters: As a senior administration official noted on a call with reporters announcing the decision, Zarif is “the international face” of Iran’s government and played a central role in negotiating the 2015 nuclear deal, which the U.S. withdrew from in May 2018. This seems to be another signal from the Trump administration that punishing Iran is a higher priority than coming to a new deal
“For far too long he has been indulged as the reasonable and credible face of Iran and today President Trump decided enough is enough.”
— Senior U.S. official
An official on the call accused Zarif of “spearheading propaganda and disinformation efforts” and implementing the policies of Iran’s supreme leader and Revolutionary Guard Corps.
View the complete July 31 article by Dave Lawler on the Axios website here.