U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued the following statement after the Associated Press released text of a draft agreement between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) covering inspections at the Parchin military site, long suspected of being involved in Iran’s past bomb work.  For weeks, Congress has been seeking access to this document.

Chairman Royce said: “It is too bad we have to rely on news services instead of the Administration to provide Congress with key text agreed to between Iran and the IAEA.  Congress has been asking for this secret deal for weeks.  The agreement looks like Iran calls the shots, vetoing technical inspections when they want, where they want at the Parchin military site.  The Obama Administration has confidence in this?  This side deal today will help define and undermine the overall agreement’s verification provisions tomorrow.  Everyone who signed this deal has worked to hide the side agreement.  We are starting to see why.”

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.

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