AMAC Exclusive – By Simon Maas
Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz warned last week that if a nuclear deal isn’t reached with Iran, the world must “enact Plan B: Use force, use economic pressure, use diplomatic pressure.” The problem is, the Biden administration has no such Plan B — and Iran knows it.
Since the early days of the 2020 presidential campaign, President Biden has made clear that one of his top priorities is to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which placed temporary curbs on Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for lifting large-scale sanctions on Tehran. Former President Trump withdrew the U.S. from the accord in 2018 after calling it “horrible” and “one-sided” throughout his own presidential campaign in 2016.
Biden and his team have repeatedly said for years now that the nuclear deal is the best and only real way to prevent Iran from building nuclear weapons. Even as some Congressional Democrats openly break with the administration and admit what Republicans have long asserted – that the deal jeopardizes American national security interests in the Middle East – Biden has refused to back down. Moreover, he has grown increasingly desperate to reach a deal, any deal – a desperation quite evident to the Iranians and their Russian allies.
Last February, for example, Biden said the U.S. wouldn’t lift sanctions on Iran to jumpstart negotiations over reviving the deal. He added that his administration would only provide the Iranian regime such economic relief if it stopped enriching uranium beyond the limit of 3.67% purity imposed by the agreement.
Four months later, however, the Treasury Department lifted sanctions on several former Iranian officials and energy companies without the regime meeting the requirements first demanded by the Biden administration.
The following week, the administration authorized transactions involving the Central Bank of Iran and the National Iranian Oil Company, two entities sanctioned by the U.S. for financing terrorism.
Both moves came amid reports that Biden’s team was looking for ways to inject momentum into stalled nuclear negotiations with Iran.
Earlier this year, to cite another example, the Biden administration granted additional sanctions relief to Iran, signing waivers related to Iran’s civilian nuclear activities. This move was also meant to entice Iran to return to compliance with the nuclear deal.
In each case, lifting sanctions was a unilateral step by the administration for which the U.S. received nothing in return. And all the while, Iran has continued to enrich uranium far beyond the limits of the deal, despite Biden’s pledge from last February.
Currently, the regime is stockpiling a significant amount of highly enriched uranium at 60% purity, just shy of weapons-grade level needed for a nuclear bomb.
It’s clear Biden’s team wants a deal at all costs, but with no tangible evidence whatsoever that they are pursuing any other options and many sanctions already lifted, all the U.S. negotiating chips appear to already be on the table.
In Jerusalem last month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken asked Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and other Israeli officials for their alternative to a nuclear deal to limit Iran’s uranium enrichment. The question was either genuine or meant to make a point that there are no good alternatives. Either way, the implication of Blinken’s question was the Iran nuclear deal currently being negotiated is the Biden administration’s Plan A, B, C, and D.
But Bennett did provide another option: deterring Iran from reaching weapons-grade enrichment by ramping up sanctions to the maximum, similar to what the U.S. and other countries are now doing to Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.
In other words, Bennett wants Washington to impose maximum economic pressure on Iran, the same policy pursued by the Trump administration.
Critics will of course argue that maximum pressure didn’t work, noting Iran was closer to being able to build a nuclear bomb at the end of Trump’s presidency than at the beginning. But this argument misses the larger point: maximum pressure was never going to work in the mere two years the sanctions were really back on – and even without maximum pressure, Iran is still moving rapidly towards possessing a bomb.
From the beginning of Trump’s maximum pressure campaign, Iran was intent on pursuing a strategy of “waiting out” Trump, enduring the crippling pain in hopes of a Democrat winning the White House in 2020 and alleviating the pressure on Iran in order to revive the nuclear deal, thereby saving the regime from economic ruin. This was a strategy which was allegedly actively encouraged by John Kerry and other alumni of the Obama administration, who were whispering in Tehran’s ear to hold on just a little bit longer.
If Trump won a second term and continued the pressure for another four long years, Iran likely would have given in, seeing no choice but to renegotiate a nuclear deal more favorable to Washington.
Or, even if Biden won but instead continued Trump’s policy of maximum pressure, Tehran would have truly been devastated and, seeing that a tough-on-Iran policy had bipartisan support, been more inclined to renegotiate in terms more favorable to the U.S.
Of course, nothing of the sort happened. Biden was elected and sought to appease Iran, signaling he wanted any nuclear deal, no matter how bad for the U.S. The current deal taking shape in talks in Vienna by all accounts looks considerably worse for America and more favorable to Iran than even the 2015 version. Iranian (and Russian) negotiators have even publicly celebrated the administration’s concessions as a U.S. “retreat.”
Simply put, Biden and his team have lost all credibility and undermined their negotiating position by making their desperate desire for a deal so plainly known.
This is why Iran had the audacity to demand in negotiations that the U.S. remove the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), an Iranian military force, from the State Department’s Foreign Terrorist Organization list.
The audacious nature of Iran’s request – asking to remove the IRGC from the terrorist designation list when the negotiations are supposed to be about agreeing to nuclear restrictions in return for lifting narrow nuclear-related sanctions — shows just how much the regime thought it could get away with. Although some reports have suggested that Biden may not cave on this one item, others have said that the administration wants to find a workaround by offering to delist some elements of the IRGC but not others.
The Iranian regime does not believe the U.S. is interested in an alternative to the nuclear deal, or that any Plan B exists. This is especially troubling since, as Bennett told Blinken, the deal is ultimately just a “Band-Aid,” a way to kick the can down the road.
Consider how, under the current terms of the deal that have been reported, all restrictions on Iran’s ability to enrich uranium and build advanced machines to enrich uranium more efficiently expire over the next decade. Just by sticking to the terms of the accord, the regime will be able to have a vast, industrial-sized nuclear program in short order, putting Tehran permanently on the threshold of breaking out toward a nuclear bomb at a time of their choosing.
Add billions of dollars’ worth of immediate, upfront sanctions relief, much of which will go toward Iran’s military and terrorist proxies, and it becomes clear what kind of effect this nuclear deal will have on the world. If he successfully revives the deal, Biden will put his immediate successors in a terrible position to stop Iran’s march to the bomb, with the U.S. having considerably less leverage and Iran having zero incentive to make concessions.
The real question Americans should be asking is whether Biden and his team want to prevent an Iranian nuclear weapon or simply want to prevent an Iranian nuclear weapon on their watch. There’s a real difference there, and that difference is everything.
Simon Maas is the pen name of a writer living in Virginia.
An interesting article posing two completely different perspectives. The Israeli side is pointing out the obvious threat to Middle east and world peace that a nuclear armed Iran would pose, while the U.S. side, at least the Democrat side as embodied by the Biden administration, is intent on facilitating Iran achieving a nuclear weapon while constantly denying that is their expressed objective. All so Obama’s sole so-called foreign policy “win” in his first two disastrous terms in office can be preserved for the history books. In short, endangering both Middle East and world peace by empowering religious zealots intent on world domination just to stoke a failed President’s (Obama’s) personal ego.
The author writes “The real question Americans should be asking is whether Biden and his team want to prevent an Iranian nuclear weapon or simply want to prevent an Iranian nuclear weapon on their watch.” The question is actually incorrect, as the Iranians, with help from the Russians and the Chinese, are estimated to be less than a year from achieving their first nuclear weapon. Iran already possesses the means to deliver such a weapon. Thanks largely to assistance from Chinese scientists, to anywhere in the Middle East and much of Europe. So given the general appeasement we’ve seen to date of America’s enemies by the Biden administration, perhaps the question should instead be “At what point will we add a nuclear armed Iran to the list of global adversaries we will be willing to bow down to?”, because I see nothing in this administration that indicates any sort of acknowledgement of the obvious threat a nuclear armed Iran would pose to this country in the very near future.
Biden has no plan “B” on anything, mostly wonder if he has a plan at all.
this is disgusting
Biden is a fool. There should be no deals of any kind with Iran.
Or, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, ———Through z, He is clueless, he wakes up in a new world every morning, the dumbest thing on planet Earth, other than the people who voted for him!
How much money is puppet biden and his son hunter making off this deal. He will not do anything without someone directing him and money is involved
Is there a Plan A?
How can anyone with Biden’s diminished mental capacity do “anything” other than be “served” … from his morning bath til he’s tucked into bed at night?
Our White House has become THE highest echelon of all “elder care facilities”. They man has NEVER been qualified to be a VP, much less govern a nation… not even a tiny one.
We All Know, “They Stole It”! And “stealing” AGAIN, is the only way they can keep it!
Biden (& obama’s) plans have always been to aid & abet America’s enemies like Iran & their terrorists , since treasonous obama supports them , since 2008 . – As they stole U.S. taxpayer funds to do it !
This article heading must be a joke. He has no Plan A on anything.
A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself. For the traitor appears not a traitor; he speaks in accents familiar to his victims, and he wears their face and their arguments, he appeals to the baseness that lies deep in the hearts of all men. He rots the soul of a nation, he works secretly and unknown in the night to undermine the pillars of the city, he infects the body politic so that it can no longer resist. A murderer is less to fear.” ― Marcus Tullius Cicero
But he does have a Plan F for Failure, Keep as is
The only way to deal with these people is strict sanctions. They don’t have to abide by any deal they make as anything like that is made with infidels and they don’t have to abide by it. How can any one group of people (DC) be so stupid! They’re putting all of us and much of the world in danger by their stupidity.
I didn’t vote for the big guy. I almost got fired supporting the other guy. I did my part. GET OUT AND VOTE then check your vote. Get others to vote him out. At this point at least the the blue state I live in anything goes for voting these days.
Any body with a need to know about Iran and “the deal” just ask Obama. Months ago I realized that Obama is serving his 3rd term as president. Clear off the dust and dirt from his past policies and we are now caught up to speed.
I don’t think Biden has any plan he just reacts when the puppet master pules his strings.
In the 1930’s people did not believe Hitler when he told us what he wanted (and planned) to do. They even let him seize more and more territory without any pushback.
Now, Iran has clearly said “Death to Israel” and “Death to America,” and has their proxies taking over Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen yet the US (under Senile Joe) is actually HELPING them! Liberal IDIOTS learn NOTHING!
Listen, we don’t make any deals with our sworn enemies. We should have learned this by now. The words Preemptive strike comes to my mind. We should be flexing our muscles, not giving Iran and the rest of our enemies the farm. However, I suspect Obama through Bobble head Biden will send another plane load of our hard-earned money to our enemy, Iran. Enough is enough. You can’t buy friends. What side is Biden on anyway? He & the Communist Congress are destroying our Great Country. We need to rid ourselves of these traitors who are selling out our Country. Send them to Iran or a Hard-Core Prison where they belong. When people are intentionally destroying our Country, why must the American people endure this and wait till the next election. For violating our Constitution, they need to be removed immediately and I mean harshly from their authoritative positions. This is no game.
No plan B? That no mind MF’er has no plan, no foresight, no memory! The most worthless POS to ever be called a human being!
Biden’s Plan A: make money selling out America.
Biden’s Plan B: make money selling out America.
Giving in to Iran has always been a very bad idea. When this goes bad, as it will, administration will respond with “who could’ve imagined they would do this?“ Iran is not an honest broker. They cannot be trusted.
doe ray me fa q bi den
… like Kamala Harris, the Biden’s don’t stand for anything beyond hedonism, and personal gain. Dumpster fire administration, the Biden people are about one thing: scorched Earth, undoing everything, reversing gains made by previous administrations –
Why do you keep saying he was elected? He was installed.
This administration is a train wreck. Off of the rails and desperate. It needs some thing to brag about even if it is piece of trash/roll over and die deal. PATHETIC AND BEING PUSHED BY SUCH HAUGHTY FOLKS AS JOHN,MY WIFE IS RICHER THAN YOURS,KERRY.
How can a senile old Brandon make any of these decisions correctly. Heck let’s just send the Iranians more pallets of money so that can get there quicker and destroy our world with nuclear fallout? As soon as they have the capability, they will strike against Israel. They do not care if there is a surviving world. They hate the Jews that much.
If we get nucked, hope the first one hits the whitehouse. Kyle L.
The Trump admin had Iran in economic straits, which along with the brilliant Abraham accords, would have forced Iran’s hand if Trump had been reelected. Like everything else that the Biden admin has botched, they have lost all the upper hand given them by the previous administration.
Biden: “C’mon, man. You’re making me look bad.”
Iran: “Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. ROTFLMAO.”
Biden can’t come up with ANY plan for ANYTHING unless he has something NEW to pin on President Donald Trump!!! TRUMP 2024 MAGA GOD BLESS the USA
Permitting Russians to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran presumably on behalf of the U.S. in Vienna (while Vladimir Putin tries to destroy Ukraine at the same time) is lunacy on parade. Biden is nothing but a wrecking ball to American interests both at home and abroad. I’m wondering how long it will be before he manages to trigger the collapse of the Abraham Accords as well and screw up a deal with Iran that serves only that evil regime’s interest. Leave it to Joe Biden who will go down in history as the worst president we’ve ever had. Pray that he doesn’t ignite World War III with Russia; some will argue it’s already begun, but my question is: Can we help Ukraine to contain it and bring it to an end?
If Biden’s top advisers had any sense, they would be pleading with Biden to impose the toughest sanctions possible on Iran. The Iranian regime has no more intention today to stop pursuing a nuclear weapon than it had when President Donald J Trump pulled the U.S. out of the JCPOA.
I have no doubt they figured out how to cheat before their signatures were even dry on the original agreement. Obama was passionate about getting a deal with Iran and Biden seems no different in his zealous pursuit of renewing the deal. But it was a bad deal on Obama’s watch, and it’s even worse today under the Biden Administration given recent credible news reports. The only thing Joe Biden is doing is helping the Iranians to finance further terrorism through their Middle East proxies and to accelerate their pace toward getting a nuclear weapon.
An interesting article posing two completely different perspectives. The Israeli side is pointing out the obvious threat to Middle east and world peace that a nuclear armed Iran would pose, while the U.S. side, at least the Democrat side as embodied by the Biden administration, is intent on facilitating Iran achieving a nuclear weapon while constantly denying that is their expressed objective. All so Obama’s sole so-called foreign policy “win” in his first two disastrous terms in office can be preserved for the history books. In short, endangering both Middle East and world peace by empowering religious zealots intent on world domination just to stoke a failed President’s (Obama’s) personal ego.
The author writes “The real question Americans should be asking is whether Biden and his team want to prevent an Iranian nuclear weapon or simply want to prevent an Iranian nuclear weapon on their watch.” The question is actually incorrect, as the Iranians, with help from the Russians and the Chinese, are estimated to be less than a year from achieving their first nuclear weapon. Iran already possesses the means to deliver such a weapon. Thanks largely to assistance from Chinese scientists, to anywhere in the Middle East and much of Europe. So given the general appeasement we’ve seen to date of America’s enemies by the Biden administration, perhaps the question should instead be “At what point will we add a nuclear armed Iran to the list of global adversaries we will be willing to bow down to?”, because I see nothing in this administration that indicates any sort of acknowledgement of the obvious threat a nuclear armed Iran would pose to this country in the very near future.
Biden has no plan “B” on anything, mostly wonder if he has a plan at all.
this is disgusting
Biden is a fool. There should be no deals of any kind with Iran.
Or, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, ———Through z, He is clueless, he wakes up in a new world every morning, the dumbest thing on planet Earth, other than the people who voted for him!
How much money is puppet biden and his son hunter making off this deal. He will not do anything without someone directing him and money is involved
Is there a Plan A?
How can anyone with Biden’s diminished mental capacity do “anything” other than be “served” … from his morning bath til he’s tucked into bed at night?
Our White House has become THE highest echelon of all “elder care facilities”. They man has NEVER been qualified to be a VP, much less govern a nation… not even a tiny one.
We All Know, “They Stole It”! And “stealing” AGAIN, is the only way they can keep it!
Biden (& obama’s) plans have always been to aid & abet America’s enemies like Iran & their terrorists , since treasonous obama supports them , since 2008 . – As they stole U.S. taxpayer funds to do it !
This article heading must be a joke. He has no Plan A on anything.
A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself. For the traitor appears not a traitor; he speaks in accents familiar to his victims, and he wears their face and their arguments, he appeals to the baseness that lies deep in the hearts of all men. He rots the soul of a nation, he works secretly and unknown in the night to undermine the pillars of the city, he infects the body politic so that it can no longer resist. A murderer is less to fear.” ― Marcus Tullius Cicero
But he does have a Plan F for Failure, Keep as is
The only way to deal with these people is strict sanctions. They don’t have to abide by any deal they make as anything like that is made with infidels and they don’t have to abide by it. How can any one group of people (DC) be so stupid! They’re putting all of us and much of the world in danger by their stupidity.
I didn’t vote for the big guy. I almost got fired supporting the other guy. I did my part. GET OUT AND VOTE then check your vote. Get others to vote him out. At this point at least the the blue state I live in anything goes for voting these days.
Any body with a need to know about Iran and “the deal” just ask Obama. Months ago I realized that Obama is serving his 3rd term as president. Clear off the dust and dirt from his past policies and we are now caught up to speed.
I don’t think Biden has any plan he just reacts when the puppet master pules his strings.
In the 1930’s people did not believe Hitler when he told us what he wanted (and planned) to do. They even let him seize more and more territory without any pushback.
Now, Iran has clearly said “Death to Israel” and “Death to America,” and has their proxies taking over Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen yet the US (under Senile Joe) is actually HELPING them! Liberal IDIOTS learn NOTHING!
Listen, we don’t make any deals with our sworn enemies. We should have learned this by now. The words Preemptive strike comes to my mind. We should be flexing our muscles, not giving Iran and the rest of our enemies the farm. However, I suspect Obama through Bobble head Biden will send another plane load of our hard-earned money to our enemy, Iran. Enough is enough. You can’t buy friends. What side is Biden on anyway? He & the Communist Congress are destroying our Great Country. We need to rid ourselves of these traitors who are selling out our Country. Send them to Iran or a Hard-Core Prison where they belong. When people are intentionally destroying our Country, why must the American people endure this and wait till the next election. For violating our Constitution, they need to be removed immediately and I mean harshly from their authoritative positions. This is no game.
No plan B? That no mind MF’er has no plan, no foresight, no memory! The most worthless POS to ever be called a human being!