Obama hails ‘ historic understanding’
Washington, April 3: US President Barack Obama touted an “historic understanding” with Iran Thursday, telling critics it would prevent Tehran from building a nuclear weapon and ease one of the most pressing threats to national security, but Republicans expressed scepticism about the deal, with House Speaker John Boehner demanding Congress be allowed to review the accord before crippling economic sanctions are lifted.
“I am convinced that if this framework leads to a final comprehensive deal, it will make our country, our allies and our world safer,” Mr Obama said in the White House Rose Garden.
Mr Obama sketched a regimen of “the most robust and intrusive inspections” ever negotiated, coupled with dramatic curbs on Iran’s ability to enrich uranium.
In return, he said, the United States would agree to end years of sanctions that have crippled the Iranian economy. “This deal is not based on trust. It’s based on unprecedented verification,” Mr Obama said. “If Iran cheats, the world will know it.”
Stating that sanctions had brought Iran to the negotiating table, Mr Obama warned that “if Iran violates the deal, sanctions can be snapped back in place.”
The US President wasted no time in trying to sell the deal to sceptical allies around the world and a hostile Congress at home. Mr Obama invited key Arab allies to a summit at the presidential retreat at Camp David this spring.
Mr Obama warned that without a deal, the US would be faced with military action as the only way to curb Iran’s activities.
“If Congress kills this deal, not based on expert analysis and without offering any reasonable alternative, then it’s the United States that will be blamed for failure of diplomacy. International unity will collapse and the path to conflict will widen,” he said.
On the other hand, several House and Senate members expressed cautious optimism on Mr Obama’s exuberance regarding the deal. Mr Boehner slammed it as an “alarming departure” from the White House’s initial goals, suggesting the Obama administration caved to Iranian negotiators and allowed certain concessions.
“My immediate concern is the administration signalling it will provide near- term sanctions relief,” he said.