Tags: I see it this way!

Dear Mr. Faircloth, Thank you for contacting me regarding Prime Minister Netanyahu's address to a joint session of Congress. I appreciate you taking the time to share your views with me on this important issue.   Let me begin by saying, I have had the privilege of visiting Israel a number of times as Delaware's Congressman and Senator.  As Governor, I led a memorable trade delegation to Israel, searching for and finding ways to bind our countries even closer together through economic opportunities. As a person of faith, the land of Israel is important to me for personal and spiritual reasons.  It is imperative that Israel remain strong and free, and to serve as a place of refuge for persons of the Jewish faith.   For all of my adult life, Israel has been one of America's most trusted allies.  The United States and Israel have a highly valued alliance that has served both nations and its people well.  Part of the strength of that alliance has been the bipartisan nature of it, and neither party has sought to make it a partisan matter. I fear that the Prime Minister's visit, with political overtones here and in Israel, will not strengthen our relationship but may actually weaken it.   Having said that, the Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner's invitation to the Prime Minister to speak before a joint session of Congress just weeks before a contested election in Israel and provide one of the candidates in that election the opportunity to criticize a major foreign policy initiative of our own President is unprecedented.  I cannot imagine when a United States president would invite a foreign leader — even one from some of our closest allies like France, Germany, the United Kingdom, or Canada — to address Congress on the eve of elections in his or her home country. Perhaps, even more troubling, is that this visit came together by completely bypassing President Barack Obama and his administration, which breaks our country's protocol for visiting heads of state and stands to weaken United States-Israel relations.   Because of these concerns with the partisan nature of the invitation, I decided not attend the Prime Minister's speech.  I did read it – it was a powerful speech – and my colleagues reported that it was skillfully delivered.   At a caucus lunch a few hours after the joint session, my colleagues and I discussed the speech at length.  One of my colleagues commented that the Prime Minister's speech included three overarching points: first, the deal the United States is negotiating with Iran is a bad deal and we should not agree to it; second, the United States and Israel can't trust the Iranians to make or keep any deal; third, let's negotiate a better deal. My colleague concluded that these statements are logically inconsistent, and I am inclined to agree. If, in the Prime Minister's opinion, Iran can never be trusted to make or keep a deal, how then can a better deal be possible?   I am especially dismayed that the Prime Minister's speech criticized negotiations that are seeking a peaceful resolution to Iran's nuclear weapons ambitions, instead of a destructive war that threatens to engulf the region and harm not just Iran, but also Israel. The importance of these negotiations, and the many months of hard work by our President and Secretary of State John Kerry, and the hard work still to come, cannot be understated.  As you know, the United States and five world powers are heavily engaged in negotiations with Iran to deter the development of its nuclear weapons program in exchange for the easing of harsh economic sanctions whose imposition I strongly support.  The United States and the other P5+1 countries, which include China, France, Germany, Russia, and the United Kingdom, have until June 30, 2015, to reach a final accord. More immediately, the President has set a goal of establishing the initial framework for a nuclear deal before the end of this month.   The reason why the President is taking us in this direction, joined by the other P5+1 countries, is that not only does he want to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons, he wants to do it in a way that avoids a war if at all possible. The United States, in cooperation with many other countries around the world, beyond just the P5+1, have joined us in imposing these harsh multilateral sanctions against Iran that have crippled their economy and have succeeded in bringing Iran to the bargaining table. These harsh sanctions have strengthened the hand of some Iranian leaders who want to forego the development of nuclear weapons and would instead prefer to focus on developing peaceful nuclear technologies for generating electricity. Some Iranians, on the other hand, want to have nuclear weapons in their arsenal as a deterrent, or, possibly, for offensive purposes.  There is a crucial disagreement within the leadership of Iran over which of those points of view, pursuing nuclear weapons or pursuing peaceful nuclear technology, shall prevail.   There are many differing opinions about the role Congress should play in the nuclear negotiations with Iran. Some people believe we should reimpose tougher sanctions now while the talks are underway.  I believe a better approach is the one embodied in a proposal offered by Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), the Iran Congressional Oversight Act (S. 669). This bipartisan proposal would require the President to report to Congress every 90 days on Iran's compliance with a nuclear deal agreed to by the P5+1 nations, including the United States and Iran.  Under this legislation, if the President reports to Congress that Iran has violated this agreement, this legislation provides for fast-track consideration of new sanctions legislation. I, along with four of my colleagues, decided to cosponsor this legislation because it ensures Iranian compliance with any nuclear agreement negotiated while giving Congress the oversight ability to quickly reimpose sanctions should Iran not keep its word.   In closing the United States and the other P5+1 countries are nearing the March deadline for a framework agreement with Iran. The President and his Administration are committed to exhausting all diplomatic efforts to resolve this issue before resorting to military action. I want to be very clear about our President's position on Iran acquiring nuclear weapons.  The President has said to my colleagues and me repeatedly that he is not going to allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon.  Period.   It is important for both the United States and Israel that we continue to find ways to strengthen a decades long partnership and friendship.  We may not agree on every issue, but at the end of the day, if Iran can be convinced not to pursue nuclear weapons, and someday not help terrorist organizations like Hezbollah and Hamas, the world we live in will be a safer place, not just for Israel, but for all of us.   Thank you again for contacting me on this important issue. Please do not hesitate to contact me again in the future regarding this and other matters of importance to you.   With best personal regards, I am,   Sincerely, Tom Carper United States Senator