U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced Washington’s decision to terminate the 1955 Treaty of Amity with Iran – a move he stressed “was long overdue.” The American decision came in response to a demand by the International Criminal Court in the Hague, which ordered the United States to lift the sanctions on Iran that affect the import of humanitarian goods, products and services linked to the safety of civil aviation. According to Iran, the Trump Administration violated the terms of a bilateral treaty between the two countries, which deemed the newly imposed sanctions illegal – a position adopted by the court’s presiding judge Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf. In response, the U.S. decided to terminate the treaty – a move that revokes the legitimacy of the court’s ruling. During a press briefing at the State Department, Secretary Pompeo emphasized that instead of choosing to alter their malign policies around the world, the Islamic Republic continues its charade of propaganda with complete disregard for the needs of their own people. “The choices that are being made inside of Iran today – to use money to foment terror around the world, to launch ballistic missiles into airports throughout the Middle East, to arm proxy militias in Iraq and in Syria and in Lebanon – those are dollars that the Iranian leadership is squandering. They could be providing humanitarian assistance to their own people but have chosen instead a different path, a path of revolutionary effort around the world showing utter disregard for the humanitarian needs of their own people,” Pompeo said.