European and American companies could lose billions of dollars in commercial deals canceled and a major new export market undercut by the U.S. decision to re-impose sanctions on Iran.
President Donald Trump’s decision will likely most hurt aircraft makers, oil companies and auto manufacturers. The final impact, however, remains unclear because of possible exemptions for some companies and even new negotiations on a revised Iran nuclear agreement, experts say.
Since the Iran nuclear deal was struck in 2015, it has been mostly European companies that moved back in to sign deals with Iran. Europe traditionally has had closer business and diplomatic ties than the U.S., where the legacy lingers from the seizure of hostages at the American embassy in Tehran nearly 40 years ago.
The leaders of Britain, France and Germany tried but failed to persuade Trump to stick with the deal. The reaction from some in Europe was bitter. Carl Bildt, the former prime minister of Sweden who is now co-chair of the European Council on Foreign Relations, said in a tweet that new U.S. sanctions “are hardly hitting any U.S. companies, but aim primarily at European ones.”
Trump fulfilled a campaign promise by announcing that he will withdraw the U.S. from the nuclear deal. As a consequence, companies worldwide must stop doing business with Iran or risk U.S. fines or other punishment.