Ryan Costello, Policy Director with the National Iranian American Council, issued the following statement after the IAEA Board of Governors passed a censure resolution calling on Iran to cooperate into the long-stalled investigation into some of Iran’s former nuclear activities. The resolution passed 30-2 with three abstentions:
Back to top“There is only one path to restoring restraints on Iran’s nuclear program, lifting punishing sanctions that harm ordinary Iranians and placing the IAEA in the best position possible to conduct its important oversight activities. Unfortunately, both the U.S. and Iran have moved away from a restoration of the nuclear accord and are lurching into a crisis one step at a time. This censure, while restrained in tone, risks playing into the hands of those in Tehran eager for provocation and escalation that could break the fragile nuclear stalemate.
“Rather than risk another dangerous escalatory spiral, it is vitally important for President Biden and Iran to find the political will to restore the JCPOA before it is too late. Regrettably, that will has been lacking from both parties, as Biden has ruled out a key concession that could salvage the agreement and Iran has been in no rush to reach a deal. A Trump-lite policy won’t work for Biden on Iran. Time is running out for him to restore the nuclear deal.”
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