A group of Republican and Democratic senators sent Thursday a letter to President Joe Biden outlining the need to use the full force of Washington’s diplomatic and economic tools to reach an agreement that prevents Iran from ever acquiring nuclear weapons and constrains its destabilizing activity throughout the Middle East.
“Democrats and Republicans may have tactical differences, but we are united on preventing an Iranian nuclear weapon and addressing the wide range of illicit Iranian behavior,” the senators wrote in a letter led by the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Bob Mendez and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham.
Signed by 43 Senators, the letter came as the Democrat Biden’s administration explores ways to restore the nuclear pact that Iran signed with the US and other world powers, but was abandoned in 2018 by then-President Donald Trump.
While recognizing their differing views on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action of 2015, the Senators who signed the letter said the US must confront the reality that Iran has accelerated its nuclear activity in alarming ways including increasing its centrifuge research and production and enriching uranium up to 20 percent.
The signatories also agreed that outside of its nuclear program, Iran continues to pose a threat to US and international security through exporting arms, including highly accurate missiles, supporting militias that target US service members, and supporting terrorist organizations and other malign actors throughout the region.
The letter also echoed concern about Iran’s continued human rights abuses of its citizens and the increasing size and capabilities of its ballistic and cruise missile programs.
