At the end of this month there will be an anniversary of a very important date in world history. It’s a date that is seldom noted and certainly not celebrated. In fact, it’s a date most would rather forget. On September 30, 1938 British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain signed a deal with Adolph Hitler and proudly proclaimed that it signaled “peace for our time.” We all know the outcome of that deal.
Fast-forward 77 years. It is unfortunate that President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry appear to be taking a page directly from Chamberlain’s playbook. Their Iran Nuclear Deal is just as naïve as the one signed with Nazi Germany all those years ago. There is one difference, however: during the negotiations with Germany, Hitler was not openly declaring death to the countries with whom he was negotiating.
The deal the Administration has made with Iran seems to be more about securing a legacy for the President than about making sure Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon. This deal simply adds time to the clock, but does nothing to change Iran’s endgame.
The deal falls well short of providing what we were told would be “anywhere, anytime” inspections. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. This deal will allow Iran up to 24 days before it is compelled to allow inspectors into suspected nuclear sites. The Obama Administration wants us to suspend all disbelief and accept that Iran won’t try to hide anything during those 24 days.
Another serious flaw in this deal is that it will allow Iran to self-inspect a key military site where it is believed that Iran has carried out nuclear tests. We are supposed to take at face value that Iran will be completely honest and forthcoming with its own inspections. This provision takes the old adage, “the fox guarding the hen house” to a whole new level.
I think everyone agrees that America has a vested interest in making sure Iran does not have nuclear weapons at its disposal. That’s why it is so mind-boggling that President Obama’s negotiators were completely fine with the fact that no Americans will be allowed on the inspection teams. Let me repeat: no American inspectors will be allowed as part of this deal. This concession begs two questions. One, why would Iran have a problem with Americans being on a multi-national inspection team if it has nothing to hide? Secondly, why would President Obama and Secretary Kerry not have serious concerns with this aspect of the deal?
Also, if the President’s deal is implemented, Iran will suddenly have $100 billion flowing into its treasury from lifted sanctions and unfrozen assets. Does anyone really believe that Iran will use this money to build schools, pave roads and make life better for its citizens? The reality is that Iran is the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world. Such sanction relief will allow the regime to funnel, unhindered, billions into the hands of terrorist organizations like Hezbollah. It will also have a treasury overflowing with money to target Israel, an American ally that the regime has previously stated it would like to “wipe off the map.” It is very likely that Iran will buy technology from Russia to improve the Iranian air defenses and to improve the accuracy of Iranians long-range missiles. This coming at the same time Russia is trying to force Ukraine to collapse.
Finally, with this deal’s approval, Iran is also able to pour these newfound dollars in to conventional military programs while they continue to enrich uranium. It will be free to develop and refine its Intercontinental Ballistic Missile Program, a program whose goal is to have missiles capable of reaching the United States. While Iran builds its military program, its regional rival Saudi Arabia may also feel compelled to do the same. And the Saudis, if they believe Iran is secretly working on a nuclear weapon behind inspectors’ backs, will likely start work on their own program.
I could go on and on about the problems with this deal. Believe me the ones I listed are just the tip of the iceberg of why this deal is so wrong for American interests, our allies’ interests and the world as a whole.
Before negotiations began, the President said that no deal was better than a bad deal. In light of everything that is wrong with the Iran Nuclear Deal, it is hard for me to imagine what the President would have considered a bad deal. Just imagine if Prime Minister Chamberlain had made the decision in 1938 to walk way from his deal with Germany. It might not have avoided conflict with the Nazis, but it would have saved countless lives lost due to a naïve approach to someone the world already knew could not be trusted.
Robert Aderholt represents Alabama’s 4th Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives
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