(New York Times) Kenneth M. Pollack - The U.S. and its allies have finally begun to work out the terms of a nuclear deal with Iran. While it is important to limit the numbers and types of centrifuges that Iran would be allowed to possess, as well as the quantities and qualities of uranium it would be allowed to keep, those issues are not the keys to getting the best deal with Iran. The White House's highest priority should be to focus on three other factors: conducting intrusive inspections, designing a mechanism to easily reimpose sanctions if Iran cheats, and extending the duration of the agreement. Given Iran's history of lying about its nuclear program, America needs what it had in Iraq: the right of the inspectors to have completely unfettered access. America also needs a "snap-back" mechanism to easily reimpose the sanctions if Iran violates the agreement. The best way is to suspend the UN and European sanctions rather than lifting them outright. In both cases, a new resolution could be passed every six months that would suspend the sanctions for six months, renewable in perpetuity. The writer is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.
2014-05-07 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive