Graham Expects Congress to Push for New Iran Sanctions

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) said Sunday he expects Congress will push for a new round of sanctions on Iran and also outline acceptable conditions for a deal, after international negotiations failed this weekend to reach a deal halting the country’s nuclear program.

Mr. Graham, speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union,” criticized U.S. negotiators for being too willing to accept an agreement that eases international sanctions against the country without also requiring Iran to fully suspend its uranium enrichment programs.

“Sanctions, along with the threat of credible military force by the U.S. and Israel have got us to this point,” he said. “If we back off now, I think that’s exactly the wrong signal.”

“I’ve never been more worried about the Obama administration’s approach to the Middle East than I am now,” he said.

Iran and six world powers, including the U.S., failed late Saturday in Geneva to seal an interim deal on Iran’s nuclear ambitions that would set the stage for talks on a longer-term agreement.  But the two sides agreed they had made enough progress to hold another round of talks.

In negotiations, U.S. officials indicated they would help Tehran repatriate as much as $50 billion in oil revenue that have been blocked in overseas accounts and free up Iran’s trade in precious metals and petrochemicals. In exchange, they demanded Iran freeze the most advanced elements of its nuclear program—its production of near weapons-grade uranium—and limit the numbers and capacity of the centrifuge machines used to enrich uranium.

The chances of reaching a deal appeared to dwindle Saturday when French Foreign Minister Lauren Fabius told French radio that there were points in a draft text that France couldn’t support, including concerns about what Iran would do with its stockpile of enriched uranium and a French demand that Iran suspend all work on its nuclear reactor at Arak.

“Thank God for France, and thank God for pushback,” Mr. Graham said Sunday.

Secretary of State John Kerry defended the administration’s willingness to ease sanctions on “Meet the Press” Sunday. “We voted for these sanctions in order to bring Iran to the negotiating table. Now that they’re there, you have to act in some good faith in an effort to be able to move towards the goal you want to achieve,” he said.

He emphasized that the “overall core architecture” of the sanctions would remain intact. “Iran will still be under enormous pressure,” he said.

Talks are expected to resume Nov. 20, though at a lower level involving senior officials, not ministers.