Show US Congress full text of Iran nuclear deal, 50 lawmakers tell Biden

A bipartisan group of 50 members of Congress sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Thursday, calling on the US president not to reach a nuclear deal with Iran before first consulting with Congress.

“We are deeply concerned about multiple provisions that reportedly may be contained in the final language of any agreement with the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism,” the letter to Biden read.

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Thursday’s letter, signed by 34 Democrats and 16 Republicans, was the latest sign of widespread bipartisan opposition to the Biden administration’s insistence on re-entering the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran.

US officials say that gaps still remain between the US and Iran over reviving the deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Sanctions relief and a softened US stance on Iran, which continues to fund and support proxies and militias across the Middle East, would be offered in return for Iran taking steps to curb its nuclear program.

In their letter to Biden, the lawmakers slammed what they said would weaken the effectiveness of sanctions on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and what would allow Russia to have a role in Iran’s nuclear capabilities. “Strengthened with an estimated one trillion dollars in sanctions relief over a decade, Iran and the IRGC would be an enormous danger to Americans at home and abroad, and to our allies,” the members of Congress said.

“Amid Iran-sponsored terror plots to assassinate former US officials and Iranian-American dissidents on American soil, this is no time to remove, suspend, or dilute US terrorism sanctions on Iran or the IRGC,” they added.

Former National Security Advisor John Bolton and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo were the targets of assassination plots, which US security agencies foiled.

Biden administration officials have brushed off calls for a need to get Congressional approval before re-entering the deal, which the US withdrew from under former President Donald Trump.

The 50 lawmakers urged Biden not to return to any deal with Iran before releasing the full text of the agreement and any side agreements to Congress, “to provide us with an in-depth briefing on the matter, and to consult with all key stakeholders.”

Turning to Russia, which was reportedly calling the shots during indirect talks in Vienna over the deal, the lawmakers criticized reports that under a new agreement, Moscow would be the “de facto judge of compliance and the keeper of Iran’s enriched uranium,” without any oversight mechanisms by the US or EU.

“We strongly urge your Administration not to permit Russia to be the recipient of Iran’s enriched uranium nor to have the right to conduct nuclear work with the Islamic Republic, including a $10 billion contract to expand Iran’s nuclear infrastructure,” they said, criticizing “war criminal” Vladimir Putin. “Iran supports the illegal war in Ukraine and has been supplying Russia with drones used to kill Ukrainians.”

The members of Congress added: “We must address the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran, stand strong against terrorists, and protect American values and our allies.”

Read more: US has responded to Iran comments on nuclear deal proposal: State Department