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Toward a Sustainable Nuclear Deal with Iran
(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) Michael Eisenstadt - Diplomats from Iran and the P5+1 will meet in Vienna to discuss implementation of the first-step nuclear agreement reached in Geneva on Nov. 24. While the White House fact sheet on the "first-step understandings" with Tehran mentions the regime's "acknowledgement" that it must resolve "questions concerning the possible military dimensions of [its] nuclear program," including "activities at Parchin," the actual text of the agreement does not go as far. Tehran's most important goal is to win the war of narratives. This means emphasizing that Iran has an inalienable right to enrich; that it has not sought to develop nuclear weapons; that such allegations are part of an American-Zionist conspiracy to unjustly smear the Islamic Republic, keep it weak and isolated, and impede scientific development in the Muslim world; and that demands for intrusive inspections and restrictions on its nuclear program reflect a discriminatory double standard. Tehran reportedly wants monitoring and restrictions to last no longer than three to five years. Yet such measures should not expire automatically on some specific date - they should be lifted based on Iran's performance, and only with the P5+1's unanimous consent. That decision should also be linked to major changes in Iran's behavior abroad, particularly its support for violent extremist and terrorist groups. The writer is director of The Washington Institute's Military and Security Studies Program.