Republicans move to clash with White House over Iran nuclear deal
Republican members of a US congressional panel have passed legislation that could undermine the nuclear agreement with Iran, setting up a potential showdown with Democrats and the White House over one of President Barack Obama's signature foreign policy initiatives.
The Republican-led House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee approved the bill by a voice vote, which will then be considered by the full House next week.
The "Iran Terror Finance Transparency Act" would give Congress more oversight of the Iran agreement announced in July.
The JCPOA, reached between Iran and six world powers in the Austrian capital of Vienna on July 14, 2015, puts limits on Iran’s nuclear activities in exchange for the removal of all economic and financial bans against the Islamic Republic related to its nuclear program.
Opponents of the measure say it is an attempt by Republicans to violate terms of the nuclear deal with new legislation because they could not gather enough votes to scuttle it last year.
Republicans say the measure is to put pressure on Iran over its ballistic missile program and its support for groups fighting Israel in the Middle East.
Several Foreign Affairs committee Democrats, including some who opposed the nuclear deal last summer, vehemently objected to the Iran oversight measure.
"I believe it doesn't serve any purpose to have bills like this that are designed to kill the deal," said US Representative Eliot Engel, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee.
"I don't want to vote 62 or 63 times on killing the Iran agreement," he said, in a reference to congressional Republicans' dozens of votes seeking to repeal Obama's healthcare reform law.
US Secretary of State John Kerry said Thursday the implementation of the Iran nuclear agreement may be only "days away," as the Islamic Republic is meeting its commitments.
Kerry told reporters at the State Department in Washington, DC, he had spoken to his Iranian counterpart, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who promised Tehran would live up to its promises made under the nuclear accord.
The JCPOA puts limits on Iran’s nuclear activities in exchange for the removal of all economic and financial bans against the Islamic Republic related to its nuclear program.
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