There are few issues more important to the security of the United States than the potential spread of nuclear weapons, or the potential for even more destructive war in the Middle East. That’s why the United States negotiated the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in the first place.
The reality is clear. The JCPOA is working – that is a view shared by our European allies, independent experts, and the current U.S. Secretary of Defense. The JCPOA is in America’s interest – it has significantly rolled back Iran’s nuclear program. And the JCPOA is a model for what diplomacy can accomplish – its inspections and verification regime is precisely what the United States should be working to put in place with North Korea. Indeed, at a time when we are all rooting for diplomacy with North Korea to succeed, walking away from the JCPOA risks losing a deal that accomplishes – with Iran – the very outcome that we are pursuing with the North Koreans.
That is why today’s announcement is so misguided. Walking away from the JCPOA turns our back on America’s closest allies, and an agreement that our country’s leading diplomats, scientists, and intelligence professionals negotiated. In a democracy, there will always be changes in policies and priorities from one Administration to the next. But the consistent flouting of agreements that our country is a party to risks eroding America’s credibility, and puts us at odds with the world’s major powers.
Debates in our country should be informed by facts, especially debates that have proven to be divisive. So it’s important to review several facts about the JCPOA.
First, the JCPOA was not just an agreement between my Administration and the Iranian government. After years of building an international coalition that could impose crippling sanctions on Iran, we reached the JCPOA together with the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the European Union, Russia, China, and Iran. It is a multilateral arms control deal, unanimously endorsed by a United Nations Security Council Resolution.
Second, the JCPOA has worked in rolling back Iran’s nuclear program. For decades, Iran had steadily advanced its nuclear program, approaching the point where they could rapidly produce enough fissile material to build a bomb. The JCPOA put a lid on that breakout capacity. Since the JCPOA was implemented, Iran has destroyed the core of a reactor that could have produced weapons-grade plutonium; removed two-thirds of its centrifuges (over 13,000) and placed them under international monitoring; and eliminated 97 percent of its stockpile of enriched uranium – the raw materials necessary for a bomb. So by any measure, the JCPOA has imposed strict limitations on Iran's nuclear program and achieved real results.
Third, the JCPOA does not rely on trust – it is rooted in the most far-reaching inspections and verification regime ever negotiated in an arms control deal. Iran’s nuclear facilities are strictly monitored. International monitors also have access to Iran’s entire nuclear supply chain, so that we can catch them if they cheat. Without the JCPOA, this monitoring and inspections regime would go away.
Fourth, Iran is complying with the JCPOA. That was not simply the view of my Administration. The United States intelligence community has continued to find that Iran is meeting its responsibilities under the deal, and has reported as much to Congress. So have our closest allies, and the international agency responsible for verifying Iranian compliance – the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Fifth, the JCPOA does not expire. The prohibition on Iran ever obtaining a nuclear weapon is permanent. Some of the most important and intrusive inspections codified by the JCPOA are permanent. Even as some of the provisions in the JCPOA do become less strict with time, this won’t happen until ten, fifteen, twenty, or twenty-five years into the deal, so there is little reason to put those restrictions at risk today.
Finally, the JCPOA was never intended to solve all of our problems with Iran. We were clear-eyed that Iran engages in destabilizing behavior – including support for terrorism, and threats toward Israel and its neighbors. But that’s precisely why it was so important that we prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Every aspect of Iranian behavior that is troubling is far more dangerous if their nuclear program is unconstrained. Our ability to confront Iran’s destabilizing behavior – and to sustain a unity of purpose with our allies – is strengthened with the JCPOA, and weakened without it.
Because of these facts, I believe that the decision to put the JCPOA at risk without any Iranian violation of the deal is a serious mistake. Without the JCPOA, the United States could eventually be left with a losing choice between a nuclear-armed Iran or another war in the Middle East. We all know the dangers of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon. It could embolden an already dangerous regime; threaten our friends with destruction; pose unacceptable dangers to America’s own security; and trigger an arms race in the world’s most dangerous region. If the constraints on Iran’s nuclear program under the JCPOA are lost, we could be hastening the day when we are faced with the choice between living with that threat, or going to war to prevent it.
In a dangerous world, America must be able to rely in part on strong, principled diplomacy to secure our country. We have been safer in the years since we achieved the JCPOA, thanks in part to the work of our diplomats, many members of Congress, and our allies. Going forward, I hope that Americans continue to speak out in support of the kind of strong, principled, fact-based, and unifying leadership that can best secure our country and uphold our responsibilities around the globe.
Did anyone read this close? This is why you do not trust your government.
This is basically saying that a bunch of nations with agendas that don't matter one bit to America or with one care about American people played Obama like a fool to make this deal. If you follow the business news you know that every single one of those countries listed in this coalition has financial interests in Iran including selling them arms, negotiating oil deals, and generally making money from their interactions with Iran.
I'm reading this as this allows Iran to build up billions of dollars to fuel violence and destabilization around the world including in nations where we have soldiers like Afghanistan and Iraq for the goal of short-term, for 20 or 25 years, we can be very assured that they won't build nuclear weapons, then we'll see what we can figure out after that period. But we're also not sure that with their billions of dollars, they're not engaged in the building of other types of weapons or other technologies aimed at undermining us, killing our soldiers, and preparing for the delivery of nuclear missiles.
Basically, a bunch of us wealthy, educated, business folks that will primarily benefit from this deal made an agreement to put this in place to stop the nukes, but hey, you soldiers and aid workers that we send to these destabilized regions, sorry, you'll have to worry about being maimed or dying. Then after Iran has built up billions of dollars, maybe trillions selling oil, obtained other military technologies from Russia, China, and Europe, then we'll hope they don't start trying to build a nuclear weapon again.
Of course, there's no reason to believe Iran will play the long game and build up their funds as well as secret networks to sell oil and prepare for sanctions when restarting their nuclear program. Iran's too dumb to do that, don't worry.
Are you kidding me? This is one of the main reasons I don't vote for Democrats. This is one of the worst deals I've ever seen. Obama basically admitted he's ok with Iran doing a lot of other evil garbage to kill people around the world to stop nuclear development via inspections for 20 to 25 years, then hope for the best. He calls this a win for diplomacy by us? How is that? We have a foreign regime hostile to us empowered with money with access to the free markets to gain more military technology that maybe won't build nukes if our inspections are real good.
Iran is not Iraq. They have four times the population of Iraq and no central figure we can take down to undermine their regime. This is one of the worst deals in the history of American diplomacy. I was never a fan of Obama, but I did not think he was this dumb and weak. Holy crap this was basically admission by a president that he made a deal he knows will kill American soldiers and allies in other nations and allow a hostile regime to build up huge cash reserves to maybe prevent nuclear weapon advancement for 20 to 25 years. Wow. This shows a level of misunderstanding of Iran I've never seen.
To all our service members and American aid workers and politicians working abroad, I hope you remain safe. Your government under Obama sold you out to Iran. They allowed a hostile regime to obtain immense funds for fueling violence against you while you are abroad in nations you are ordered into including groups like Shia Taliban in Afghanistan and Shia militias in Iraq and the Syrian regime under Bashar. I know we have guys on this board like Irish Greg out there on behalf of America fighting for our safety. It's sad to see our government made a deal from a position of strength to put your lives in greater danger. Unbelievable.
And you guys on here are taking shots at Trump for his collusion with Russia? Yet Obama actually allows Russia and China to be part of a deal with a nation they will sell arms too, arms that may be used to kill our soldiers and people and those of our allies. Yet you all think Obama is somehow the "better" man. Sorry, this killed any sympathy I had for Obama. I'm done with that guy. He just admitted he empowered a foreign regime with the funds to expand their violence and destabilization.He negotiated this deal from a position of strength and with allies he should know have considerable financial gains through the deal, including competitive nations like Russia and China. This was an awful deal and our former president was played for a fool.
