|
Trending Topics
|
Source: https://www.politico.com/staff/andrew-desiderio
Biden Faces Democratic Skeptics on Iran Deal 2.0
(Politico) Andrew Desiderio - President Biden's nascent bid to revive the Iran nuclear deal for a "longer, stronger" diplomatic agreement is already facing deep skepticism and potential hurdles in Congress - including from the president's own party. Fellow Democrats are warning of an increasingly rocky path back to full compliance with the terms of the 2015 deal, particularly after recently leaked audio revealed Iran's foreign minister, Javad Zarif, lamenting the influence of the country's Revolutionary Guard Corps in his diplomatic efforts with the West. The Iranian minister's comments signaled that moderate forces in Iran are taking a back seat to more extremist hard-liners. Reentering the JCPOA would almost certainly require the Biden administration to lift some Trump-era sanctions - which could be subject to congressional approval, including from Democratic hawks. "If we get reciprocity on the things we care about from the Iranians, there will have to be sanctions relief. But the real question is, what are you giving sanctions relief for?" said Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), who opposed the 2015 agreement with Iran.