Iran agrees to nuclear framework

The U.S., Iran and five world powers on Thursday reached a preliminary deal designed to contain Iran’s nuclear program, one that would restrict Iran’s ability to enrich uranium and subject it to international inspections, but which also would gradually remove harsh economic sanctions from the Islamic Republic, politico.com reports.

The agreement, if it holds, could prove to be President Barack Obama’s biggest foreign policy achievement, a success stemming from his conviction that it’s worth engaging even longtime adversaries such as Tehran. But while the framework won praise for its surprising level of detail, it failed to quell sharp scepticism from many Republicans as well as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“It is a good deal,” Obama declared Thursday, calling it “a historic understanding with Iran which, if implemented, will prevent it from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

“I am convinced that if this framework leads to a final deal, it will make our country and the world safer,” Obama said in a appearance at the White House Rose Garden. The deal, unveiled in Lausanne, Switzerland, would “cut off every pathway that Iran could take to develop a nuclear weapon.”

Obama struck a confident tone, directly engaging potential critics including Netanyahu and Republicans in Congress. Pointing to the possibility for military conflict should the talks ultimately fail, Obama said, “I welcome a robust debate.”

That debate started immediately.

Netanyahu, speaking several hours after the deal was announced, said “The concessions offered to Iran in Lausanne would ensure a bad deal that would endanger Israel, the Middle East and the peace of the world. Now is the time for the international community to insist on a better deal.”

House Speaker John Boehner, who has been on a trip to the Middle East, questioned elements of the deal related to sanctions relief. The Republican insisted: “It would be naive to suggest the Iranian regime will not continue to use its nuclear program, and any economic relief, to further destabilize the region.”

Obama said he saw three options: The first, the U.S.’ current path of a negotiated agreement with Iran. Second, bombing Iran’s nuclear facilities, a move he warned would set its program back only “by a few years.” The third option, Obama said, was to “pull out of negotiations … and hope for the best.”

“Iran is not going to dismantle its program because we demand it do so,” he said. “That’s not how the world works.”

Obama said he had already called Saudi Arabia’s King Salman before his Rose Garden speech. But Obama did not call Netanyahu until well after his remarks — during a flight to Louisville, Kentucky, aboard Air Force One. According to the White House, the president told Netanyahu the deal “in no way diminishes our concerns with respect to Iran’s sponsorship of terrorism and threats towards Israel.” Obama also directed his national security team to “increase consultations” with the Israeli government. The Israeli readout of the call said that Netanyahu stressed that the deal would threaten Israel’s existence.

The agreement itself was announced in Lausanne by European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif.

Crucial elements of the deal include:

— Iran will dismantle two-thirds of its 19,000 installed centrifuges. Those devices, which spin uranium into material that can be used for a nuclear weapon, will be stored under International Atomic Energy Agency oversight. Tehran will be left with 6,104 centrifuges, lower than some reported offers by the U.S., and 5,060 of those can be used to enrich uranium.

— Iran can keep open an underground nuclear facility at Fordow, a controversial site because it was built in secret and only revealed by the U.S. in 2009. Iran will not be required to close the facility but could use it only for research that does not include the enrichment of uranium.

— Rigorous transparency and inspection measures to ensure that Iran doesn’t cheat on any deal. They include granting the IAEA intrusive access to Iran’s nuclear facilities and supply chain, including to its domestic uranium mines and mills. The inspections would continue even after many elements of the deal have expired in 2025, including surveillance of Iran’s centrifuge rotors until 2035. Iran has also agreed to some indefinite transparency measures.

— In return for the limits on Iran’s program, the U.S. and EU will suspend sanctions after the IAEA has verified Iran’s compliance with the deal; those sanctions can automatically “snap back” if Iran violates the agreement at any time. (Obama can temporarily suspend sanctions passed by Congress, although only Congress can permanently repeal them.) The United Nations will also lift its sanctions on Iran after it meets the deal’s requirements.