Bronx, NY—Representative Eliot L. Engel, Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, today made the following statement:

“Iran must never possess a nuclear weapon, but the failures of the Trump Administration have brought us closer to that profoundly dangerous reality. President Trump and Secretary Pompeo have failed miserably in stopping the expiration of the arms embargo against Iran. We all knew that the expiration of the arms embargo was coming. Nearly 400 members of Congress reminded the administration of the stakes in a bipartisan letter that I led to Secretary Pompeo earlier this year.  The Trump Administration talked a big game but has produced no results.  Re-imposing sanctions, known as snapback, is the ultimate admission of failure.  The United States withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, and it’s not clear whether we can still use the leverage that comes with being a participant in the JCPOA, including invoking snapback.  

“I have always supported American strategy to isolate Iran because Iran is one of the greatest threats to our security and that of our allies, but the Trump strategy has isolated America instead. Iran is closer to a nuclear weapon and can more easily buy and sell weapons today than at the beginning of Trump’s presidency. The Trump Administration had more than three years to plan a diplomatic strategy to stop this day from arriving and they failed. They have made mistake after mistake, and it has made all of us less safe.”

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