WASHINGTON—Representative Eliot L. Engel, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, today made the following statement:

“Iran is a menace to the region and to its own people, and it must never have a nuclear weapon. The United States has an essential role to play in pressuring Iran to change its behavior as the world’s most prolific state sponsor of terrorism and a threat to security around the world. 

“The decision to maintain sanctions waivers is the right one. But the Trump Administration’s policy announced today sets impossible standards that would ultimately isolate the United States rather than isolating the regime in Tehran. That scenario would allow Iran to rush headlong toward a bomb while harming American credibility and leadership on the global stage.

“I’m all in favor of trying to address the agreement’s weaknesses. But the way to do so is to engage with international partners and build momentum to negotiate new provisions. The wrong approach is to bully countries with arbitrary and unenforceable deadlines.

“And we need to put to rest the canard that Congress can somehow unilaterally change the deal. Any legislation that affects America’s adherence to the deal would make us the country walking away from our commitments. Like it or not, we need to uphold our end of the bargain so that we can hold Iran to its obligations and crack down on the regime’s other destabilizing activities.”

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