OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Letter to Barack Obama, President of the United States - Call for Diplomacy with Iran

Letter

By: Joe Courtney, Joyce Beatty, G. K. Butterfield, Jr., Raul Grijalva, Lloyd Doggett II, Gloria Negrete McLeod, Mark Pocan, George Miller, Dutch Ruppersberger, Hank Johnson, Jr., Dave Loebsack, Marcy Kaptur, Bill Foster, Donna Christensen, Elijah Cummings, Jim Clyburn, Annie Kuster, Louise Slaughter, Jerry McNerney, Tim Walz, Donna Edwards, Robin Kelly, Lucille Roybal-Allard, Jim Matheson, Richard Hanna, Rosa DeLauro, David Price, André Carson, Corrine Brown, Madeleine Bordallo, Pedro Pierluisi, Jan Schakowsky, Jim McDermott, Bobby Rush, Mike Thompson, Jared Polis, Bennie Thompson, Pete Visclosky, Maxine Waters, Bobby Scott, John Conyers, Jr., Yvette Clarke, John Tierney, Luis Gutiérrez, Betty McCollum, Diana DeGette, John Garamendi, Jackie Speier, Eleanor Norton, John Duncan, Jr., Tim Ryan, Peter Welch, Lacy Clay, Jr., Mike Capuano, Jim Cooper, Keith Ellison, Rick Nolan, Gregory Meeks, Marcia Fudge, Peter DeFazio, Niki Tsongas, Gwen Moore, Barbara Lee, John Dingell, Ed Pastor, Gerry Connolly, Steve Cohen, Matt Cartwright, Jim McGovern, Carolyn McCarthy, Anna Eshoo, Danny Davis, Thomas Massie, John Lewis, Stephen Lynch, Don Payne, Jr., John Larson, Eddie Johnson, Emanuel Cleaver II, Sanford Bishop, Jr., Nick Rahall II, Chellie Pingree, Rush Holt, Jr., Bill Enyart, Sheila Jackson Lee, Bill Keating, Walter Jones, Jr., Jerry Moran, Paul Tonko, John Yarmuth, Karen Bass, Earl Blumenauer, Lois Capps, Mark Takano, Carol Shea-Porter, Sam Farr, Charlie Rangel, Jared Huffman, Kilili Sablan, Chris Van Hollen, Jr., Beto O'Rourke, Dan Kildee, Zoe Lofgren
Date: Feb. 12, 2014
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Foreign Affairs

Dear Mr. President,

As Members of Congress--and as Americans--we are united in our unequivocal commitment to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. The proliferation of nuclear weapons in the Middle East would threaten the security of the United States and our allies in the region, particularly Israel.

The ongoing implementation of the Joint Plan of Action agreed to by Iran and the "P5+1" nations last November increases the possibility of a comprehensive and verifiable international agreement. We understand that there is no assurance of success and that, if talks break down or Iran reneges on pledges it made in the interim agreement, Congress may be compelled to act as it has in the past by enacting additional sanctions legislation. At present, however, we believe that Congress must give diplomacy a chance. A bill or resolution that risks fracturing our international coalition or, worse yet, undermining our credibility in future negotiations and jeopardizing hard-won progress toward a verifiable final agreement, must be avoided.

We remain wary of the Iranian regime. But we believe that robust diplomacy remains our best possible strategic option, and we commend you and your designees for the developments in Geneva. Should negotiations fail or falter, nothing precludes a change in strategy. But we must not imperil the possibility of a diplomatic success before we even have a chance to pursue it.


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