Thread: President Obama is speaking about an Iran nuclear deal.

White House Issues Saturday Night Iran Deal Warning To Senate

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/0...n_6870992.html

White House delivers new warning to Senate on Iran legislation
Published March 15, 2015

The White House sent a new warning to the Senate late Saturday saying to stay out of negotiations with Iran over the country’s nuclear program, asserting that potential legislation would have a “profoundly negative impact” on current negotiations.

President Obama’s chief of staff Dennis McDonough told Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker in a letter that legislation sponsored by Corker would go beyond ensuring a role for Congress in a deal with Iran.










"Instead, the legislation would potentially prevent any deal from succeeding by suggesting that Congress must vote to 'approve' any deal," McDonough said. He criticized a provision that would eliminate Obama's authority to lift some sanctions on Iran as part of any agreement.

Talks are set to resume Sunday in Switzerland with the U.S. and other world leaders facing a looming March deadline to reach a framework deal.

"The administration's request to Congress is simple: Let us complete the negotiations before the Congress acts on legislation," McDonough said, adding that he does expect a robust congressional debate if a final deal is struck by the end of June.


McDonough echoed Obama’s threats to veto the legislation should Congress pass it.

Corker and other senators in both parties believe Congress should be able to vote on any agreement to block Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

"On this issue where Congress has played such a vital role, I believe it is very important that Congress appropriately weigh in before any final agreement is implemented," Corker said in a statement late Saturday.

McDonough’s letter follows one this week that was signed by 47 Republican senators and addressed to Iran’s leaders warning that any agreement with the U.S. could expire once Obama leaves office.

The White House slammed the letter saying it was politically motivated and an attempt to undermine the president’s ability to conduct foreign policy and advance U.S. national security interests.

The GOP letter follows a controversial March 3 speech to a joint meeting of Congress by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in which he warned that the emerging nuclear agreement would all but guarantee that Iran gets nuclear weapons. House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, invited the prime minister to speak without input from the White House and State Department, in what the White House said was a departure from protocol.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015...n-legislation/

Obama administration says Iran and Hezbollah no longer terror threats

Just when you think Obama’s absolutely awful foreign policy and pandering to radical Islam couldn’t possibly get any worse, he decides to remove both Iran and Hezbollah off the list of terror threats.

So either this guy is intentionally placing our country and our relationships with allies in the Middle East at risk, or he’s dumber than a box of rocks and actually believes his progressive kumbaya style policies will create a peaceful Utopian society on earth.

I’m thinking it’s both.

From Times of Israel: http://www.timesofisrael.com/us-repo...error-threats/

An annual report delivered recently to the US Senate by James Clapper, the director of National Intelligence, removed Iran and Hezbollah from its list of terrorism threats, after years in which they featured in similar reports.

The unclassified version of the Worldwide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Communities, dated February 26, 2015 (PDF http://www.dni.gov/files/documents/U...SASC_FINAL.pdf ), noted Iran’s efforts to combat Sunni extremists, including those of the ultra-radical Islamic State group, who were perceived to constitute the preeminent terrorist threat to American interests worldwide.

In describing Iran’s regional role, the report noted the Islamic Republic’s “intentions to dampen sectarianism, build responsive partners, and deescalate tensions with Saudi Arabia,” but cautioned that “Iranian leaders—particularly within the security services—are pursuing policies with negative secondary consequences for regional stability and potentially for Iran.

The Shiite Lebanese group Hezbollah, which is funded and mentored by Tehran, has been fighting the Islamic State, independently of the American-led campaign, both in Syria and Iraq.

According to one Israeli think tank, the removal of Iran and its proxy Hezbollah from the list of terror threats, where they featured in previous years, was directly linked to the campaign against the Islamic State.

So here’s Obama logic for removing these two from the terror threat list.

If they are attacking our current enemy, ISIS, then they must be on our side, so that makes them good guys, not terrorists, despite holding the same ideology as the Islamic State and having a history of wanting to wipe America off the face of the earth.

Our president is a Harvard graduate, people. Supposedly one of the best schools in the country. I have to say, if Obama is representative of the type of geniuses this “institution of higher learning” produces, I’ll be sending my kids elsewhere, thanks.

Obama and his ilk constantly look for opportunities to pander to the Muslim community, and their “efforts” to destroy ISIS are just political smoke screens used to pull the wool over the eyes of gullible politicians like the president.

Iran and Hezbollah believe essentially the same things as ISIS terrorists, which in my book, is enough to keep them permanently on the terror threat list.

Playing politics with national security puts the whole country in danger, as well as our allies, but this doesn’t seem to matter to the current administration.

With these kind of policies in place, it’s only a matter of time before a bunch of loonies from the Middle East are able to carry out a major attack on U.S. soil.

http://www.youngcons.com/obama-admin...0ugKzsaX0H8.99

Originally Posted by Jolie Rouge

where are all our "Obamabots" now ???

President Barack Obama says if a nuclear deal is fully implemented,
it will prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb: http://cnn.it/19NdojY

WTH??



Tehran and West Agree on Parameters of Deal for Iran’s Nuclear Program

Accord envisages strong constraints and controls on Iran for up to 25 years in exchange for lifting of sanctions

By Laurence Norman And Jay Solomon
Updated April 2, 2015 5:14 p.m. ET

Iran and six world powers agreed on parameters of a deal meant to block Tehran from developing nuclear weapons in exchange for the lifting of tough Western sanctions.

U.S. President Barack Obama called it a “historic understanding” between two estranged nations after the outlines of a deal were announced Thursday in Lausanne, Switzerland. But he hinted at its fragility, saying the success of a final accord is far from guaranteed.

“I am convinced that if this framework leads to a final, comprehensive deal, it will make our country, our allies, and our world safer. This has been a long time coming,” Mr. Obama said. “It is a good deal, a deal that meets our core objectives.” He said the deal, if completed, would block any pathway for Iran to acquire a nuclear bomb and argued the only real alternative to continued diplomacy is war.

Negotiators would start drafting an accord immediately, working toward a June 30 deadline, officials said.

The deal would place strong constraints and controls on Iran’s nuclear work for up to 25 years, with severe limits for the first decade. U.S. officials said Iran’s timeline for amassing enough nuclear fuel for a weapon would rise to at least one year for the first decade of a deal. That is in line with the key Western demand. Iran’s so-called breakout time is currently two to three months.

But it was still unclear how two of the major sticking points in the final days of negotiations were resolved. One unanswered question was when exactly sanctions would be eased, and the other was how quickly Iran will be able to scale up its nuclear activities after the first decade.

Congressional Republicans swiftly criticized the framework agreement. The Senate is expected to vote April 14 on legislation that would give lawmakers final approval of a deal—a bill Mr. Obama has said he would veto.

The U.S. said all U.N. Security Council sanctions resolutions against Iran would be lifted once Iran carries out all key steps in the agreement, something that would have to be verified by the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog.

Removal of sanctions could provide a big economic boost for Iran’s hobbled economy, Western diplomats have said, allowing a broad range of energy, trade and financial ties to the rest of the world to be re-established.

A wide range of economic and financial sanctions approved by the U.N Security Council would be suspended once Iran implements important elements of the deal. Under the framework, six Security Council resolutions against Iran over its nuclear program would be scrapped.

But a new resolution would be passed which would maintain severe restrictions on sales of material that could be used in Iran’s nuclear program. It would also place unspecified limitations on exports of arms to Iran and on materials that can be used in its ballistic missile program.

According to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, European Union and U.S. nuclear-related sanctions on Iran would start to be lifted within four to 12 months of a final deal, but only depending upon how quickly Iran moved to implement its key pledges under the deal.

The EU would suspend its economic, energy and banking sanctions which include an oil embargo on Iran. The U.S. would roll back a range of sanctions that penalize U.S. domestic and foreign companies for establishing economic and financial ties with Iran, including with its central bank.

U.S. sanctions tied to terrorism, human rights and its ballistic missiles program, however, would remain in effect. The U.S. wouldn’t terminate those sanctions, a move requiring congressional oversight, for “much of the duration” of the agreement.



ENLARGE

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As Iran and the six-power group had long said, many of the key details in the framework still needed to be fleshed out to reach a final nuclear agreement. But U.S. officials provided a number of important details for the constraints that Iran’s nuclear program would face.

Iran would see the number of installed centrifuges—machines used to enrich uranium—cut from around 19,000 at present to 6,104, of which only 5,060 would be able to operate for the first decade. All of those machines would be older, first-generation centrifuges.

Low-enriched uranium can be used as fuel for nuclear energy while uranium enriched to higher levels can be used to fuel nuclear weapons. Iran has agreed not to enrich uranium to a level above 3.67% for 15 years, significantly lower than the 90% purity needed for weapons grade material. That limitation was stronger than expected.

Enrichment of uranium would only take place at Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility. There would be some centrifuges at the heavily fortified, underground nuclear facility of Fordow. Iran would be unable to enrich uranium there and would stock no fissile material at the site.

Iran has also agreed to cap its stockpile of low-enriched uranium to 300 kilograms from the current roughly 10,000 kilograms. It would be limited at that level for 15 years, although it is unclear whether Tehran would ship the material out of the country.

Mr. Obama faces several potential obstacles to reaching a full agreement by the June 30 deadline, including Congress, U.S. allies in the Middle East and the Iranian regime.

“Our work is not yet done. The deal has not been signed,” Mr. Obama added. “And success is not guaranteed.”

Mr. Obama said he invited the leaders of the countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council—Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain—to meet this spring at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland. He also vowed to make his case to Congress and the American public.

The president said a diplomatic deal is the only viable solution to keeping Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, absent military action against Iran. He said he would speak with congressional leaders, as well as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on Thursday.

“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 the failure of diplomacy. International unity will collapse, and the path to conflict will widen,” Mr. Obama said.

Iran has been negotiating with the U.S., the U.K., France, Russia, China and Germany over its nuclear program—talks have dragged on for more than 12 years.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius praised the agreement, but he warned more work was necessary to hold Tehran accountable. Mr. Fabius, who has maintained a tough line during the nuclear talks, said the deal was a “step forward but we haven’t reached our final destination.”

France’s chief diplomat said a key sticking point remained the question of whether world powers would be able to reinstate crippling economic sanctions quickly if Tehran wavers in implementing the deal. He said negotiators drafting a final deal need to overcome this hurdle before sealing a lasting accord.

“The precise mechanism hasn’t yet been totally fine-tuned. So, this is a positive step, but there’s still work,” Mr. Fabius said.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed agreement on the key sticking points in a deal with Iran to mitigate tensions in the region. She said parties are “closer than ever” to an agreement.

U.S. House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) said the framework announced Thursday raises concern given the provisions for providing Iran with sanctions relief.

“Congress must be allowed to fully review the details of any agreement before any sanctions are lifted,” Mr. Boehner said in a statement.

Sen. Bob Corker (R., Tenn.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he would go ahead with an April 14 vote on his bill to give Congress final approval of any deal.

“It is important that we wait to see the specific details of today’s announcement, and as the P5+1 works toward any final deal, we must remain clear-eyed regarding Iran’s continued resistance to concessions, long history of covert nuclear weapons-related activities, support of terrorism and its current role in destabilizing the region,” Mr. Corker said.

“If a final agreement is reached, the American people, through their elected representatives, must have the opportunity to weigh in to ensure the deal truly can eliminate the threat of Iran’s nuclear program and hold the regime accountable,” Mr. Corker said.

The White House has threatened to veto his bill, as well as another that would apply additional sanctions if negotiators don’t reach a deal by the end of June.

Ahead of the announcement of the agreement in Switzerland, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said the terms of the framework threatened Israel and the world.

“The concessions offered to Iran in Lausanne would ensure a bad deal that would endanger Israel, the Middle East and the peace of the world,” Mr. Netanyahu said on Twitter. He called on the international community to demand better terms and said any deal must address Iran’s nuclear abilities as well as its regional aggression.

The U.S. and its negotiating partners have said the talks focus only on Iran’s nuclear program.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon congratulated the negotiators and said he was convinced a comprehensive, negotiated solution will contribute to peace and stability in the region.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/tehran-a...wsj_india_main

What's in the Iran nuclear deal? 7 key points
By Eric Bradner, CNN
Updated 2247 GMT (0547 HKT) April 2, 2015


Washington (CNN)—Six world powers led by the United States announced on Thursday a framework deal with Iran limiting its nuclear program. The agreement outlines major points to be flesh out in a final deal, the details of which have to be worked out by the end of June. Negotiators in Lausanne, Switzerland, twice extended the talks past Tuesday's deadline for a framework because of deep differences between the parties. So what exactly did they finally agree to? Here are 7 key points, as conveyed by U.S. officials.

1. Centrifuges

Iran would have to reduce its total of about 19,000 centrifuges -- 10,000 of which are still spinning today -- down to 6,104 under the deal, with only 5,060 allowed to enrich uranium over the next 10 years. Centrifuges are tube-shaped machines used to enrich uranium, the material necessary for nuclear power -- and nuclear bombs.

2. Uranium enrichment

Iran's centrifuges will only enrich uranium to 3.67% -- enough for civil use to power parts of the country, but not enough to build a nuclear bomb. That agreement lasts 15 years. And Tehran has agreed not to build any new uranium enrichment facilities over that period as well. The 3.67% is a major decline, and it follows Iran's move to water down its stockpile of 20% enriched uranium last year. In addition, Iran will reduce its current stockpile of 10,000 kilograms of low-enriched uranium to 300 kilograms for 15 years.

3. Breakout time

The period of time that it would take for Iran to acquire the material it needs to make one nuclear weapon, currently assessed at two to three months, would be extended to about one year under the deal. That year-long breakout period would be in place for at least 10 years.

4. Fordow facility

Iran's Fordow nuclear reactor would stop enriching uranium for at least 15 years. It will not have fissile material at the facility, but it will be able to keep 1,000 centrifuges there. Fordo, one of the country's biggest reactors, is buried more than 200 feet under the side of a mountain and was hidden from the international community until the U.S. revealed it in 2009.

5. Research and development

Iran can continue its research and development on enrichment, but that work will be limited to keep the country to its breakout time frame of one year. Though Iran will be required to make changes at a number of its facilities -- including reducing centrifuges and rebuilding a heavy water reactor in Arak -- the country will get to maintain its current facilities.

6. Inspections

Iran will be required to provide inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, access to all of its declared facilities so that the agency can ensure there is no potential for military-related developments. That includes access to Parchin, an Iranian military facility related to its nuclear program. Western countries have been seeking unfettered access throughout Iran, not just declared facilities, as Iran has previously conducted nuclear work in secret.

7. Sanctions lifted

The United States and the European Union would lift their nuclear-related sanctions on the Iranian economy -- a priority for Iran -- after a U.N. watchdog verifies it has taken key steps. If there are violations, the sanctions will snap back into place. U.N. sanctions will also be lifted when Iran completes its nuclear-related steps, though some peripheral restrictions will be contained in a new Security Council resolution. International reductions in purchases of Iranian oil and increased isolation of the Middle Eastern country had squeezed its economy in recent years, and the lifting of those sanctions could bring the country major financial rewards.

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/04/02/po...ent/index.html

Iran made move against U.S. Navy in Persian Gulf
Published on April 2nd, 2015 | by Allen West Republic

FIRST REPORTED BY CNN: An Iranian military observation aircraft flew within 50 yards of an armed U.S. Navy helicopter over the Persian Gulf this month, sparking concern that top Iranian commanders might not be in full control of local forces, CNN has learned.


An MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter approaches the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson in November 2014.

The incident, which has not been publicly disclosed, troubled U.S. military officials because the unsafe maneuver could have triggered a serious incident.

It also surprised U.S. commanders because in recent months Iranian forces have conducted exercises and operations in the region in a professional manner, one U.S. military official told CNN. “We think this might have been locally ordered,” the official said.

The incident took place as the U.S. and other world powers meet with Iran in Switzerland to negotiate a deal limiting Tehran’s nuclear program. At the same time, Iran has been active in supporting proxies in several hotspots in the Persian Gulf and neighboring regions.

FULL STORY & VIDEO HERE http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/31/politi...ulf/index.html

MORE ON THIS HERE http://conservativetribune.com/iran-...ainst-us-navy/

ANOTHER REPORT HERE http://woundedamericanwarrior.com/br...-does-nothing/

http://allenwestrepublic.com/2015/04...-persian-gulf/

Khamenei calls ‘Death to America’ as Kerry hails progress on nuke deal

Day after Obama urges Iran to seize ‘historic opportunity,’ supreme leader says US seeks to create insecurity

By Times of Israel staff, AP and AFP March 21, 2015, 8:37 pm

Iran’s Supreme leader Ali Khamenei called for “Death to America” on Saturday, a day after President Barack Obama appealed to Iran to seize a “historic opportunity” for a nuclear deal and a better future, and as US Secretary of State John Kerry claimed substantial progress toward an accord.

Khamenei told a crowd in Tehran that Iran would not capitulate to Western demands. When the crowd started shouting, “Death to America,” the ayatollah responded: “Of course yes, death to America, because America is the original source of this pressure.




“They insist on putting pressure on our dear people’s economy,” he said, referring to economic sanctions aimed at halting Iran’s nuclear program. “What is their goal? Their goal is to put the people against the system,” he said. “The politics of America is to create insecurity,” he added, referring both to US pressure on Iran and elsewhere in the region.

Khamenei’s comments contrasted with those of Iranian President Hassan Rohani, who said “achieving a deal is possible” by the March 31 target date for a preliminary accord.

Kerry was more circumspect, as he spoke to reporters after six days of negotiations in the Swiss city of Lausanne. The talks, made “substantial progress,” he said, but “important gaps remain.

“We have an opportunity to get this right,” Kerry said, as he urged Iran to make “fundamental decisions” that prove to the world it has no interest in atomic weapons.

But Khamenei warned against expectations that even a done deal would mend the more than three-decade freeze between the two nations in place since the Iranian revolution and siege of the American Embassy, proclaiming that Washington and Tehran remained on opposite sides on most issues.

“Negotiations with America are solely on the nuclear issue and nothing else. Everyone has to know that,” Khamenei said.

In a reflection of the delicate state of negotiations, other officials differed on how close the sides were to a deal.

Top Russian negotiator Sergey Ryabkov and Iran’s atomic energy chief Ali Akbar Salehi said in recent days that technical work was nearly done. But French officials insisted the sides were far from any agreement.

Kerry was departing later Saturday to meet with European allies in London, in part to ensure unity, before returning to Washington. Kerry said the U.S. and its five negotiating partners — Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia — are “united in our goal, our approach, our resolve and our determination.”

But France, which raised last minute objections to an interim agreement reached with Iran in 2013, could threaten a deal again. It is particularly opposed to providing Iran with quick relief from international sanctions and wants a longer timeframe for restrictions on Iran’s nuclear activity.

“France wants an agreement, but a robust agreement,” French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius told French radio. “That is to say, an accord that really guarantees that Iran can obviously have access to the civil nuclear (program).”

“But to the atomic bomb? No.”

France indicated Saturday that it would push for an agreement with Iran that guarantees Tehran cannot build a nuclear bomb in the future, and that it opposed a phased easing of sanctions before an accord is reached.

On Twitter on Friday, France’s ambassador to the U.S. called talk about needing a deal by March 31 a “bad tactic” that is “counterproductive and dangerous.” Gerard Araud called it an “artificial deadline” and said negotiators should focus instead on the next phase — reaching a complete agreement by the end of June.

In the round of talks in Switzerland this weekend, cut short Friday because of the death of Rouhani’s mother, Fabius called the French delegation to make sure no more concessions were made, according to Reuters.

French diplomats have been pressing their counterparts not to give in on key elements, such as the easing of sanctions before serious progress is made, and arguing that the upcoming deadline was an “artificial” date, the Wall Street Journal reported. The P5+1, France argues, should be willing to press Tehran for a better deal and wait, if necessary.

Kerry said the U.S. wasn’t rushing into a pact, stressing that the latest stab at a diplomatic settlement with Iran has gone on for 2 ½ years. “We don’t want just any deal,” he said. “If we had, we could have announced something a long time ago.”

But, he added, decisions “don’t get any easier as time goes by.”

“It’s time to make hard decisions,” Kerry said. “We want the right deal that would make the world, including the United States and our closest allies and partners, safer and more secure. And that is our test.”

One encouraging sign is the apparent narrowing of differences on Iran’s uranium enrichment program. Tehran insists it wants to enrich only for energy, medical and research purposes, but much of the world fears it could turn the process toward making the fissile core of a nuclear warhead.

As the current round wound down this week, officials told The Associated Press that the United States and Iran are drafting elements of a deal that commits the Iranians to a 40 percent cut in the number of machines they use to enrich. The Obama administration is seeking a deal that stretches the time Tehran would need to make a nuclear weapon from the present two to three months to at least a year.

For Washington, the stakes are high if the talks miss the March deadline. The Obama administration has warned that a diplomatic failure could lead to an ever tougher dilemma: Whether to launch a military attack on Iran or allow it to reach nuclear weapons capacity.

A more immediate challenge may be intervention from Congress. If American lawmakers pass new economic sanctions on Iran, the Islamic Republic could respond by busting through the interim limits on its nuclear program it agreed to 16 months ago. Thus far, it has stuck to that agreement.

http://www.timesofisrael.com/khamene...-on-nuke-deal/