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A Diplomatic Insurance Policy Against Iran
(Washington Post) Robert Menendez - A diplomatic breakthrough resulting in a peaceful and verifiable termination of Iran's nuclear weapons program is the preferred outcome of the Obama administration's negotiations with Iran. Backing up this achievement by taking out a diplomatic insurance policy is an act of reasonable pragmatism. Since an agreement was reached in Geneva in November: Iran has continued elements of construction in Arak, a heavy-water nuclear reactor site that, if completed, would provide an alternate plutonium track to a nuclear weapon. Iran announced that it is building a new generation of centrifuges for uranium enrichment and conceded that it has 19,000 centrifuges, a thousand more than previously disclosed. The Iranians fired a rocket into space, expanding their space technology program and improving their ability to develop a long-range ballistic missile. Iranian lawmakers have proposed legislation to enrich uranium up to 60%, well beyond any potential use for peaceful purposes. And when the Treasury Department blacklisted 19 companies for sanctions evasion last month, the Iranians, demonstrating their customary bluff-and-bluster techniques, walked out of negotiations. The Nuclear Weapons Free Iran Act, a bill with bipartisan support in the Senate, endorses the Obama administration's efforts and the Joint Plan of Action achieved in November. It supports continued negotiations, gives the administration a year of flexibility to secure a comprehensive agreement, respects the sanctions relief Iran is set to receive and prevents any new sanctions from taking effect while good-faith negotiations are underway. The American public supports diplomacy. So do I. The American public doesn't trust the Iranian regime. Neither do I. The writer is Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.