Diplomacy worked before. Ten years ago, in 2015, Iran agreed to dismantle its nuclear program and allow United Nations weapons inspectors inside the country for regular monitoring and review. By all accounts, this worked to halt weapons-grade uranium enrichment, if not Iran’s other hostile activities.

But despite fashioning himself as the dealmaker-in-chief, President Donald Trump pulled out of the original deal in 2018 and has yet to secure a new one. In the first go-around, the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council— China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States—plus Germany were involved in a deeply deliberative process. This time, Iran is asking the United States to calm the waters and Russia is offering to secure Iran’s uranium, while Trump leaves a meeting with G-7 leaders warning “everyone should evacuate Tehran.”