Congress Gets in the Way
If
there is any hope for a peaceful resolution of the nuclear dispute with
Iran, President Obama needs Congress to support negotiations. But
negotiations and compromise are largely anathema in Washington, with
many lawmakers insisting that any deal with Iran would be unacceptable —
a stance that would make military action by Israel and the United
States far more likely.
Last
week, just as Iran and the major powers made some small progress in
talks and agreed to meet again, two measures were introduced in Congress
that could harm negotiations.
One is a Senate
resolution sponsored by Robert Menendez, the Democratic chairman of the
Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Lindsey Graham, a Republican.
It says that if Israel “is compelled to take military action in
self-defense, the United States government should stand with Israel and
provide diplomatic, military and economic support to the government of
Israel in its defense of its territory, people and existence.” No one
doubts that the United States would defend Israel if it was attacked by
Iran; that commitment has been made repeatedly by President Obama and
his predecessors. The nonbinding resolution, promoted by the American
Israel Public Affairs Committee, a lobbying group, would not authorize
any specific action, but it would increase political pressure on Mr.
Obama by putting Congress on record as backing a military operation
initiated by Israel at a time of Israel’s choosing. It could also hamper
negotiations by playing into Iranian fears that America’s true
intention is to promote regime change.
The second measure, a bipartisan bill, would pile
on tougher sanctions just as the two sides are trying to create trust
after decades of hostility. The bill would further restrict business
dealings with Iran, widen the list of blacklisted Iranian companies and
individuals, and potentially block Iran’s access to foreign bank assets
held in euros. It could unravel the international coalition against Iran
by penalizing countries — like Turkey, India, South Korea and China —
that have not done enough to enforce sanctions.
Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel told the annual Aipac conference
this week that there must be a “credible military threat” against Iran.
Vice President Joseph Biden Jr. also assured the group that Mr. Obama
would use force if needed.
The
best way to avert military conflict is by negotiating a credible,
verifiable agreement. It is a very long shot. But Congress needs to give
the talks time to play out and not make diplomatic efforts even harder.
A
version of this editorial appeared in print on March 9, 2013, on page
A16 of the New York edition with the headline: Congress Gets in the Way.
