Senate Democrats are sticking to their deadline for progress on talks with Iran, saying they will support new sanctions if a political framework limiting Tehran’s nuclear ambitions can’t be reached by late March.
Democratic support in the Senate is critical to the success of bipartisan sanctions legislation that President Obama has threatened to veto. Though they have used that leverage to give the White House more space to try to reach a deal, several key lawmakers have signaled that their patience has run out.
“I signed the letter that said give them until March 24. At that point in time I expect the administration will have either some concrete advances or it’s over,” Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., said Tuesday.
March 24 is the deadline set by international negotiators late last year for a political framework to replace a November 2013 interim agreement that was only supposed to last six months but is still in effect. Negotiators from Iran and the “P5+1” group — the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China — have agreed to have a final deal in place by June 30.
On Monday, Obama indicated a further extension of the talks was unlikely.
“The issues now are sufficiently narrowed and sufficiently clarified where we’re at point where they need to make a decision,” he said at a joint news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. “They should be able to get to yes. But we don’t know if that’s going to happen.
“My view — and I’ve presented this to members of Congress — is that we now know enough that the issues are no longer technical. The issues now are, does Iran have the political will and the desire to get a deal done?”
Sanctions legislation co-authored by Sens. Mark Kirk, R-Ill., and Bob Menendez, D-N.J., would impose increasingly stiff penalties on Iran, starting with tightening its access to oil markets, if the June 30 deadline passes without a deal. Though the bill was approved by the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee on Jan. 29 in a strong, bipartisan 18-4 vote, Menendez arranged for Democrats to withhold their support for the bill on the floor until March 24, to give the administration time to negotiate after Obama said new sanctions would blow up the talks.
When asked if that deadline still held, Menendez told the Washington Examiner: “We’re waiting until the end of March to see what the administration comes up with in terms of a deal.”
But other Democrats were more explicit.
“After that, many of us intend to support Kirk-Menendez, myself included,” said Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, a member of the Senate Democratic leadership.
“I think everyone’s pretty adamant about that and would like to see progress,” said Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, one of eight Democrats who have co-sponsored the sanctions bill.
