Dear Friend,
Over the weekend it was announced that the United States, along with six other world powers, and Iran reached an agreement on a plan forward toward loosening economic sanctions placed on Iran in return for a temporary freeze in their nuclear program.
This is an international issue that I believe warrants your attention. It’s also an issue I continue to have very serious reservations about both with the underlying negotiated plan with Iran and the failure so far during these discussions to come to an agreement to completely dismantle Iran’s nuclear program.
A nuclear Iran will lead to further destabilizing a region already consumed in turmoil and it would be a direct threat to our allies in the area, including Israel. I am concerned that while negotiations have been ongoing it has allowed Iran to further develop key components of its nuclear program that make it more difficult to reverse as these discussions continue.
The tough sanctions placed on Iran to date have been working and until the international community can fully verify Iran is dismantling its nuclear program, I firmly believe current sanction must stay in effect and the threat of further sanctions should remain on the table.
The Iran nuclear deal to temporarily freeze much of Iran’s nuclear program is set to go into effect this Monday, January 20th. So this means the real test of Iran’s willingness to cooperate with the international community begins next week. I have my reservations and I will be monitoring this issue closely as it develops.
Sincerely,
Kay Granger
Member of Congress