Today, U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued the following statement on news that an Iran nuclear agreement side deal between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) would allow Iran, instead of international inspectors, to police its own nuclear arms development sites:

“International inspections should be done by international inspectors.  Period.  The standard of ‘anywhere, anytime’ inspections – so critical to a viable agreement – has dropped to ‘when Iran wants, where Iran wants, on Iran’s terms.’  For weeks, Congress has been demanding access to this document to assess the viability of the inspections measures.  Congress must now consider whether this unprecedented arrangement will keep Iran from cheating.  This is a dangerous farce.”

Note:  Earlier this month, Chairman Royce sent a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry to express his deep concern with the “separate arrangements” established between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regarding Iran’s past bomb work and access to the Iranian military base at Parchin.  In the letter to Secretary Kerry, Chairman Royce warned that Iran will almost certainly treat the secret arrangements reached with the IAEA as setting a precedent for future inspections of suspicious Iranian sites.

Also earlier this month, Chairman Royce introduced H.J.Res. 64, legislation that would prevent the implementation of the Obama Administration’s nuclear agreement with Iran.

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