A couple of years ago, I had Ernest Moniz on News and Views.
Moniz
was
Secretary of Energy under President Obama. He was also one of the negotiators
of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The
JCPOA
was
the Iran nuclear deal. It was agreed to and signed by the European Union, China,
France, Russia, the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States.
Iran, of course, also signed the agreement. In it, Iran
agreed to eliminate its stockpile of enriched uranium and 2/3 of its gas
centrifuges for 13 years. They also agreed to not build any new heavy water
facilities.
There were more details, but basically, Iran gave up their
nuclear weapons program.
In order to make sure they complied with the agreement, Iran
agreed to inspections at any time. The International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA)
was chosen by the signers
to do the inspections.
In return, Iran would receive relief from the United States,
European Union and the United Nations Security Council nuclear related
sanctions. The sanctions were lifted and they had their money freed up,
including the $1.8 billion that we owed them.
President Trump blew up the deal despite the fact that his
own cabinet members said Iran was living up to the agreement. We were the only
country that did. Our President not only misrepresented the JCPOA but he couldn’t
convince one country to go along with him. Not a single one of them came out in
favor of Trump’s actions.
The countries knew they couldn’t trust Iran. That’s why they
demanded spot inspections. The inspections conducted were by the IAEA when and
where they wanted them to be.
All this forces the biggest question of all. How do we
control Iran? Do we take advantage of our sanctions that drove them to this
agreement? Do we use the coalition of nations with the same goal?
The agreement the countries signed with Iran was a
risk
.
The world took a chance and will never find out if it worked. In the words of
Ronald Reagan, Trump never took a chance to “trust and verify.”
Today’s Iran is
far
more valuable to Trump. A country
we all agree to hate. A country that deserves it.
I just wish someday we’d realize how to change it. But then,
maybe we did.
Good riding with you.
(Joel Heitkamp is a talk show host on the Mighty 790 KFGO in Fargo-Moorhead. His award-winning program, “News & Views,” can be heard weekdays from 8 – 11 a.m. Follow Joel on Twitter @JoelKFGO.)
