Lawmakers Fight Back Against Biden’s Iran Plans
Congresswoman Claudia Tenney has spoken out against a congressional letter calling for snapback sanctions on Iran only after the regime enriches uranium beyond 90 percent.
Congresswoman Claudia Tenney has spoken out against a congressional letter calling for snapback sanctions on Iran only after the regime enriches uranium beyond 90 percent.
Those levels, which would be at least 24 times the limit allowed under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), cause grave concern and Tenney has said “this would be too little, too late, and that snapback should be triggered immediately in response to Iran’s persistent non-compliance with its commitments”.
Her statement comes at a time when the Biden administration is growing closer to an interim agreement with Iran as the October deadline to the expiration of sanctions draws nearer.
“Signaling to the Islamic Republic of Iran that it should only face consequences for its reckless nuclear extortion if it reaches the dangerous threshold of 90 percent weapons-grade nuclear enrichment is deeply concerning,” said Tenney.
“Iran is already enriching uranium at 24 times the limit allowed by the JCPOA – the time for action is now, not after Iran blows past the critical benchmark of achieving weapons-grade enriched uranium.”
Tenney recently led a bipartisan letter with Representative Josh Gottheimer encouraging the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, and Germany (E3) to initiate snapback sanctions on Iran under United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2231.
“Threatening snapback only after Iran reaches the 90 percent threshold also creates a new and dangerous standard that Iranian enrichment up to 89.9 percent is somehow acceptable. Let me be clear: it is absolutely not acceptable. We need to stop moving the goalposts and start increasing the pressure. The time for snapback is now,” she said.
Her calls are being echoed across the spectrum. Presidential candidate, Senator Tim Scott, has also urged bipartisan action to intervene in the Biden moves to placate Iran.
“The Obama administration tried to bypass Congress in negotiating the deeply flawed JCPOA. We responded by passing bipartisan legislation to require them to submit any nuclear deal with Iran to Congress for review,” he said.
“Now the Biden Administration is using the same playbook. I joined my colleagues in introducing a backstop to require any deal that lifts sanctions on Iran be submitted to Congress. Now is not the time to weaken our stance against the Iranian regime.”
There is growing concern the Biden Administration will use unwritten informal agreements to circumvent the requirement for congressional review under US law. This week, Senators Jim Risch, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Bill Hagerty, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, led colleagues in reintroducing the Iran Sanctions Relief Review Act (ISRRA), a bill to ensure that the president submits any sanctions relief relating to Iran for congressional review.
The legislation would provide a backstop if the Executive Branch attempts to evade the legal requirements for congressional review of any agreement related to Iran’s nuclear program contained in the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act (Public Law 114-17).
“As the Biden Administration contemplates another enormous cash windfall to the Iranian regime in exchange for dubious non-proliferation promises, it is vitally important that Congress has a voice in any sanctions relief,” said Risch.
He stressed Iran’s ongoing support for Russia in its war on Ukraine, incidents which have led to deaths of US citizens and plots against former US officials, and the brutal suppression of protests since September, as reasons the regime is dangerous. “Congress has an obligation to ensure that sanctions relief does not fund these appalling activities,” he said.
Hagerty, one of 33 senators pushing for greater controls over the president in dealings with Iran, said checks and balances on any deal for sanctions relief, are a must. Warning of the consequences, he said: “As Iran’s terror-sponsoring regime continues to pursue nuclear weapons to harm Americans and our regional partners and allies, it is critical to provide insurance if President Biden keeps trying to run around Congress and relieve sanctions on Iran.”
In their letter released by the Jewish Insider on Monday, 249 lawmakers, including 133 Democrats and 116 Republicans, expressed concerns over the regime’s ability to enrich uranium to the weapons-grade level in a matter of days.
They cited a March report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) about particles of uranium enriched to the 83.7% level, just below the 90% level generally considered to be needed to produce nuclear weapons, and remarks by Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl about Iran being able to enrich enough weapons-grade uranium for a bomb in as little as 12 days.
“The United States must increase its efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons capability and to communicate to Iran, without any ambiguity, that any further progress in its nuclear program will result in severe consequences,” the letter reads.
Calling for coordination with US allies “to implement the snapback mechanism embedded in UN Security Council Resolution 2231 should Iran advance its uranium enrichment past the 90% weapons-grade threshold," they said such a coordination "would send a powerful message of our unified commitment to deterring Iran’s nuclear program” as well as the message that Iran “would not be able to reap the benefits of international sanctions relief if it operates outside of its nuclear commitments.
They also voiced worries beyond Iran’s nuclear program, mentioning Tehran’s ever-closer ties with Russia and China, quoting US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley as calling the China-Iran-Russia relationship a problem for the US “for many years to come.” “This strengthened alliance bolsters the Iranian regime's confidence and may make them more likely to challenge US allies and interests,” read the letter.
Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) told Iran International’s Arash Alaei that “President Biden has made very clear that we cannot allow Iran... to have nuclear weapons.”
With the JCPOA, "at least we had better eyes, combined with Russia and China, on Iran's activities. We need to do all we can to prevent (Iran from getting nukes). This is a very dangerous part of the world," he added.
Following reports that the Biden administration is working on an unwritten agreement with the Islamic Republic, US lawmakers at the House and the Senate have moved to further restrict the White House in its dealings with Iran, or at least force the administration to keep the Congress on the loop.
Last week, the Foreign Affairs Committee of the US House of Representatives unanimously passed a resolution to make some punitive measures against Iran permanent. The bipartisan bill called Solidifying Iran Sanctions Act of 2023, has the potential to make the 1996 sanctions against Iran – or several other measures -- permanent by deleting the 'sunset clause' in any action against the Islamic Republic, a provision that provides an expiry date for a measure.
Former Iranian diplomat and scholar Kourosh Ahmadi wrote in an article last week that “If the 2015 nuclear deal [JCPOA] has lost its non-proliferation value…the objective should be improving it” instead of aiming for an interim and limited deal “that cannot last more than one or two years.”
Ahmadi called a possible interim deal a temporary fix that cannot overcome the chronic instability that disrupts and hinders Iran’s economic progress. Do we want just to patch things up for a short period of time, he asked, or put the country on the road to progress.
Referring to media reports about “a new wave of negotiations between Iran and the United States over an “understanding” or “a verbal agreement,” Etemad Online website pointed out in an analysis that Iranian officials have not provided any information about such an agreement, although they have confirmed that negotiations have taken place in Muscat, New York and Doha. US officials have also made minimal statements about the talks to swap prisoners and release Iran’s assets in Iraq but ruled out any talks over the JCPOA.
According to Etemad Online, it appears that Iran and the United States have reached an understanding about “stabilizing the current situation” and about some kind of “political cease-fire.” This will prevent crises at the points of contact, such as in Syria and the Persian Gulf. Etemad added that Iran on the other hand might be aiming for a détente with the United States alongside the rapprochement with Saudi Arabia, which can give Tehran access to its hard currency funds frozen abroad.
Etemad Online also opined that restored relations with Saudi Arabia can help Tehran achieve an agreement or an understanding with Washington. Based on the new deal Iran might agree not to enrich Uranium beyond 60 percent and stop installing new modern centrifuges while also promising to boost its cooperation with the IAEA, Etemad Online said, based on reports in Western media.
Also on the agenda of the negotiations are Iran’s cooperation with Russia in the war against Ukraine and the attacks on the US forces by Iran’s proxy groups in Iraq and Syria. The United States, on the other hand, will promise not to intensify the sanctions and instead, release more of Iran’s frozen assets abroad and facilitate Iran’s oil sales.
According to Nameh News website, Kambiz Mehdizadeh, an aide and son-in-law of former President Hassan Rouhani wrote in a tweet about the possibility of talks between Iran and the US: “An interim agreement or whatever you might call it is like a painkiller pill that can alleviate the symptoms of a cold. It can stop a runny nose, but it cannot help us to bring in foreign investments or help us purchase aircraft.”
On social media, Afifeh Abdi, an Iranian journalist and a foreign policy researcher, wrote in a June 22 tweet: “The ongoing negotiations over the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) are being furthered not because of the skill of Iran’s current negotiating team, but because of the strong US motivation to buy time and to keep Iran away from Russia and China. For the United States, these negotiations mean giving small concessions for strategic achievements!” Ms. Abdi added: “But what can Iran do? Iran has limited choices.”
In a comment under the post, a Twitter user wrote: “When Iran refuses to bring about essential economic reforms because its officials benefit from the ongoing corruption, and refuses to grant social liberties to the people, then the officials run the country on a day-to-day basis and try to get hold of hard currency to temporarily control the markets. Later, the United States will break its promises and the exchange rates will jump like a spring.”
In his weekly media briefing, spokesman Nasser Kanaani repeated the Iranian regime’s narrative of “decades of crimes” by the United States.
“Iran’s approach to America emanates from their hostile behavior, and as long as America’s behavior does not fundamentally change, it is natural that Iran’s attitude toward America remains the same,” Kanaani announced.
He was speaking in the context of improving relations with neighboring countries and reports of secret talks and even an ‘understanding’ with the United States.
The reality that Tehran and Washington have been holding mediated talks in Oman, Qatar and even having direct contacts in New York is all but certain. Numerous media reports and statements by Israeli officials have pointed to a possible unwritten deal, whereby the US would allow the release of Iran’s frozen funds in exchange for some temporary restraint in uranium enrichment.
The Biden administration has denied any such “interim deal” but few believe that some kind negotiation is not taking place behind the scenes.
Kanaani also added that Tehran does not link its foreign policy and pursuit of national interests to relations with any one country or one issue, referring to the United States and the dispute over its nuclear program.
However, Kanaani also spoke about exchanging prisoners, an issue that Washington has hinted is a subject of talks and can reduce tensions and possibly open the way for more agreements.
The Iranian spokesman said that the United States should free Iranian citizens that “the American regime has jailed based on various false excuses related to violating sanctions.” Kanaani said that US sanctions in essence are illegal, and Iran has been trying for years to free these prisoners.
The Iranian regime is currently holding three American dual-nationals hostage based on trumped-up charges of spying and after bogus trials without due process of law. On the other hand, individuals arrested in the US for violating sanctions have received the benefits of full and transparent trials.
Kanaani claimed that in the past and in different periods certain agreements were reached with Washington through intermediaries but when it came to implementation the US was not ready to make decisions. He confirmed that currently talks are taking place with the help of parties that have “goodwill” in this regard, but “we need to see if America is ready to make decisions or not.”
Earlier this month, the Biden administration allowed Iraq to release $2.7 billion it owed Iran for energy imports – part of a larger amount in Iraqi banks. This was seen as a gesture to reach a deal on prisoners, but so far nothing has been finalized.
It is not clear if the released funds will be made available to Tehran in cash US dollars or in credits that Iran can use to import food and medicine. No details were announced about the $2.7 billion released by Iraq. South Korea holds another $7 billion and apparently the unresolved issues in prisoner exchange revolves around these funds and how Iran can access the money.
At the same time, it is perhaps inevitable that release of the frozen funds and exchange of prisoners become entangled with the nuclear issue, especially if an interim deal is being discussed.
According to a confidential letter leaked by the hacktivist group ‘Uprising till Overthrow' on Sunday, Ali Shamkhani wrote that investigations over human rights violations during the crackdown on protests since September 2022 could even lead to revelations about other older incidents in Iran, such as the mass executions in the 1980s.
In the letter, Shamkhani said that such a mission had only been formed for countries struggling with crises and civil unrest such as Syria, Libya and Sudan, noting that the creation of this mission has a connotation that Iran is also struggling with serious problems.
Despite Shamkhani’s list of suggestions to prevent the initiative at the UN, the fact-finding mission was finally launched.
In its resolution S35/1, "on the deteriorating situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, especially with respect to women and children," adopted in November 2022, the Human Rights Council decided to establish an independent international fact-finding mission.
The mandate of the mission was to thoroughly and independently investigate human rights violations in Iran related to the protests that began in September 2022, after a 22-year-old woman was killed in police custody. The mission was also mandated to engage with all relevant stakeholders, including the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, as well as relevant United Nations entities.
Shamkhani, in his letter, suggested that Iran should invite Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association, Clément Nyaletsossi.
Shamkhani said that a visit by the rapporteur may lead to negative reports but also positive ones as the regime could argue that “thousands” of rallies were held without any clashes.
The leaked documents do not provide an insight on what the response was from Khamenei's office.
In recent months there were rumors about Shamkhani stepping aside as hardliners blamed him for failure to suppress the protests. In video-taped remarks released on the internet in November, former lawmaker Hamid Rasaei, a hardliner cleric, accused him of failing to quash protests.
The conjecture was further confirmed after the hacktivist group hacked into 120 servers at the presidential office, getting access to internal communications, minutes of meetings, President Ebrahims Raisi’s online conference platforms and about 1,300 computers inside the office.
Among the released documents, there is correspondence between the president’s office and the office of Shamkhani, confirming rumors that he stepped down over conflicts with the Raisi administration.
In one letter addressed to Shamkhani, the president's chief of staff, Gholam-Hossein Esmaili, criticized the security chief for a lack of insight into the protests. With a condescending tone, Esmaili rebuked Shamkhani’s office for “merely describing and analyzing the events,” asking him to provide “meta-analyses and predictions” about the developments regarding the protests.