ECI: ‘A Very Bad Deal’

This looks to be a very bad deal. The Iranian regime would obtain major sanctions relief in exchange for token and superficial concessions that neither freeze nor set back its nuclear weapons program. The deal would vitiate nearly a decade of UN Security Council resolutions demanding the full cessation of enrichment by Iran. The deal would allow Iran to continue enrichment, to continue construction of its plutonium reactor, and to continue building centrifuges that will shorten the regime’s breakout time to becoming a nuclear weapons state. Furthermore, such an interim deal would invite Iran to drag out talks while enrichment proceeds, which is something President Rouhani has boasted of doing in the past.

We oppose such a deal, which would make war and nuclear proliferation in the Middle East more likely and would undermine U.S. security by making the world a more dangerous place. Friends and enemies alike would now be convinced that the administration’s past guarantees were empty promises, its past red lines written in disappearing ink. If the administration announces such a deal, Congress should take all appropriate measures to oppose it and ratchet up sanctions. And Congress should also make it clear that the United States will stand with our ally, Israel, if she judges it necessary to act to prevent the Iranian regime from acquiring nuclear weapons.
William Kristol
Gary Bauer
Noah Pollak
Michael Goldfarb