Washington, D.C. – House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA) released the following statement after the Obama administration announced the “implementation day” for its nuclear deal with Tehran:

“The Obama administration’s nuclear deal with Tehran trades temporary restrictions on Iran for permanent sanctions relief.  That’s why bipartisan majorities opposed this agreement in Congress.

“Under this deal, Iran will keep much of its nuclear infrastructure and continue to develop advanced centrifuges, gaining the ability to produce nuclear fuel on an industrial scale.  The ayatollah won’t even have to cheat to be just steps away from a nuclear weapon.  Meanwhile, tens of billions of dollars in sanctions relief will now start flowing to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

“Since the nuclear deal was signed, Iran has twice violated U.N. resolutions to test ballistic missiles, fired rockets within 1,500 yards of the U.S.S. Truman, and seized ten American sailors—all while propping up the murderous Assad regime in Syria. Iran will use this deal to become more militarily aggressive and dominate the region. 

“In selling this agreement, President Obama pledged to keep the pressure on Iran for its destructive behavior. Yet it is Iran that has pressured the administration to drop new sanctions against its missile program and then announced its acceleration.  This flawed deal is only entrenching Iran’s military and security forces that run the country.  Now more than ever, we need a policy of backbone, not backing down.”

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