Newsweek:

Iran is remaining officially neutral in the United States' upcoming 2020 elections, expressing skepticism that even a Democratic victory over President Donald Trump would immediately ease the soaring tensions between Washington and Tehran, an Iranian official told Newsweek.

As Democratic frontrunners vie over the primary position to challenge Trump in November, each candidate has criticized the president's decision to leave a multilateral nuclear deal with Iran and impose strict sanctions against the Islamic Republic. However, should a Democrat win this year's U.S. national election, an Iranian official said, the president-elect would be pressured by forces at home and abroad to adopt a hardline policy against Tehran.

"Our general understanding is that if a Democrat is elected, there will be a tremendous effort, domestic and international, to influence the president's approach to Iran," the Iranian official told Newsweek.

"Both within the United States and outside, they will try to influence the new president," the official added. "There are certain lobbies within Washington and foreign lobbies working against us."

The Trump administration's 2018 exit from the nuclear deal, known officially as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, came to the dismay of its other signatories but was welcomed by powerful critics who are eager to keep any future plans to renew the agreement off the table. Without a diplomatic track, however, a wave of unrest has descended across the Middle East, especially in Iraq and the Persian Gulf.

Now, nearly two years of heavy U.S.-imposed economic restrictions—as well as additional political and military pressure—has done considerable damage to Iran's trust in the White House as an institution. Still, the door to new negotiations remained open should either Trump or his potential successor choose to pursue it.

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