Ahead of looming deadline, Merkel defends Iran deal

What they're saying: Merkel reportedly told Israel TV’s Channel 10 that Germany will monitor developments "very closely to ensure that this agreement will be fulfilled.”

• Iran's foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told reporters that Trump's threats to pull out of the Iran nuclear agreement were sending a "very dangerous message" to other countries negotiating with U.S. Zarif said that, should the U.S. withdraw from the deal, the ultimate consequences "won't be very pleasant to the United States."
• French President Emmanuel Macron, who will arrive in Washington this week for the first official state visit hosted by Trump, told Chris Wallace on "Fox News Sunday”: "I don't have any plan B for nuclear against Iran, so that's the question we will discuss."

The backstory: Under the Obama-era deal, which Trump has repeatedly blasted as flawed, Iran had agreed to put limits on parts of its nuclear program in exchange for relief from economic sanctions.