Macron wants Iran’s missile program put ‘under surveillance’

Tehran’s ballistic missile program must be placed under international surveillance, French President Emmanuel Macron has said. The bid positions the French leader to get tougher on Tehran while preserving the nuclear deal that US President Donald Trump has threatened to scrap, Reuters said. France, one of the signatories to the 2015 nuclear deal, wants to preserve it as nothing better has been offered, according to Macron. However, he said late on Tuesday the use of “Iranian-linked missiles in Yemen and Syria” needed to be addressed. “And [we need] to put Iran under surveillance over its ballistic missiles. It’s indispensable for the security of the region and so we need a mechanism of sanctions and control adapted to that,” Reuters quoted Macron as saying. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on February 8 that the West must ensure the nuclear deal succeeds before trying to negotiate other issues.