A State Department press briefing turned testy Thursday when reporters pressed Secretary of State John Kerry’s spokesman for information about “confidential” information about the Iran nuclear deal.
“Don’t insult me, and don’t stand up there and try to lecture me on English, OK?” State Department spokesman John Kirby snapped at a reporter Thursday.
The rebuke came following questions about whether the United States and other Western powers agreed to give Iran “secret exemptions” from certain provisions of the nuclear pact in order to ensure that the deal be implemented on time. Kirby confirmed that some “guidance” had been given to Iran by a joint commission created for the Iran deal. But he refused to say what the guidance was, citing the commission’s “consensus” that the talks should remain confidential.
“I’m not going to talk about the specific work of the joint commission,” Kirby said. “I’m not going to do that — I can’t do that — because by the agreement itself, it’s confidential.”
After trying to get more information, some reporters pressed Kirby to say if the United States government wanted the talks to be confidential. “So ‘consensus,’ as you know, means ‘unanimous’ in diplomatic terms. Every member of the joint commission has opposed making public its work?” one reporter asked. “I want to make sure you’re saying something accurate here, that every member of the joint commission has decided it’s better to keep its deliberations and decisions secret or if you’re using the word ‘consensus’ in some other, non-precise way.”
That’s when Kirby got especially annoyed. “Let’s be grown-ups here,” Kirby said. “In diplomatic discussions, particularly multilateral ones, as I said, those discussions are confidential unless all parties agree otherwise. So, the joint commission — and I don’t know who voted for what, and frankly it’s irrelevant — the joint commission has decided to keep their work confidential, as they are expected to do, unless they choose otherwise in accordance with the JCPOA.”
Kirby added that the details of the Iran deal guidance had been given to members of Congress, even if they weren’t being aired out in the press.
The conversation ended on a conciliatory note, with another reporter assuring Kirby that he has the respect of the press corps. “And that reflects not only your work in this room to date but also your entire career as a public servant,” the reporter told Kirby, a retired rear admiral in the U.S. Navy.
“I appreciate that, thank you,” Kirby replied.
