LAFF Society

NEWSLETTER

The Iran Nuclear Deal: An Interview

 

 
“There is at least one thing worse than fighting with allies, and that is to fight without them. Winston Churchill with that statement summed up a basic truth of international politics and war.”
 
That observation was made by Arthur I. Cyr in an interview with the Irani news agency Mehr soon after the decision by President Donald Trump to “decertify” the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the multilateral agreement on Iran’s development of nuclear weapons that was signed in 2015. 
 
“Churchill’s words bear directly on the current debate over the nuclear agreement with Iran,” Cyr said. “United States leaders seem to be pre-occupied with talking to themselves, while ignoring partners in the agreement, including our most vital durable allies.”
 
Cyr worked at Ford from 1971 to 1974 in the Education and Research program, the European and International Affairs office and the Public Policy Committee. He now is director of the Clausen Center for World Business at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wis.
 
Mehr, which is based in Tehran, describes itself as a private and non-official media agency, which was begun in 2004.
 
“President Donald Trump,” said Cyr, “has dramatically ‘decertified’ Iran, arguing they are not abiding by the international agreement to deter developing nuclear weapons. This means Congress can now decide whether to re-impose economic sanctions. In fact, the Tehran government has carefully remained within the limits of the accord, while pressing at the margins….
 
“The United States remains institutionally bound by membership in a range of international and regional organizations. As a current example, the U.S. remains within the international agreement on Iran’s nuclear program, despite the dramatic statement by President Trump. 
 
“Not many years ago, there was strong political sentiment in the U.S. for leaving the United Nations. That is no longer the case.”

 

 

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