Kerry Strongly Supports Iran Nuclear Agreement

US Secretary of State John Kerry has strongly defended the Iran nuclear agreement after the Obama administration won enough support from Democrats for the deal.

“President Obama and I are convinced beyond any reasonable doubt that the framework that we have put forward will get the job done,” he said.

Kerry made the comments during a speech at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Wednesday.

The top US diplomat also acknowledged that sanctions were not enough to reach a deal with Tehran.

“We also had to face an obvious fact: sanctions alone were not getting the job done, not even close,” he said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Senator Barbara Mikulski became the 34th member of the Senate, who supported the accord and survived it in Congress.

President Barack Obama had earlier announced that he would veto a resolution of disapproval over the agreement. He needed 34 votes to uphold veto and now he has enough support.

Congress later this month will vote on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) reached between Iran and the P5+1 group — the United States, Britain, France, China, Russia and Germany – in Vienna on July 14.

According to the international agreement, Iran will be recognized by the United Nations as a nuclear power and will continue its uranium enrichment program.

Iran sanctions are set to be removed in exchange for some limitations on the country’s nuclear energy program.

There is quite good chance for Iran agreement to pass Congress

An American foreign policy commentator says there is a “quite good chance” of approval for the Iran nuclear agreement in the US Congress even if all of the Republicans vote against it.

“I think the chances of approving the agreement in the Congress are quite good,” said James George Jatras, a former US diplomat and adviser to the Senate Republican leadership.

He made the remarks shortly after 34th Senate Democrat announced his support for the agreement and survived President Barack Obama’s top foreign policy legacy from disapproval.

Democratic Senator Barbara Mikulski, who will be retired in 2016, announced on Wednesday that she would support the deal reached between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries — the US, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany – in the Austrian capital, Vienna, on July 14.

The Congress is set to vote on a resolution of disapproval over the agreement later this month.

Under the agreement, restrictions will be put on Iran’s nuclear activities in exchange for, among other things, the removal of all economic sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

“The Democrats will be very carefully counting noses and essentially giving a pass to certain senators and congressmen to vote NO on the agreement, but maintaining and reserve enough senators and congressmen to uphold it after the certain veto that will come from the White House,” said Jatras.

“What they will do is to say to these senators and congressmen who may be endangered for re-election:You, you and you can vote against the agreement but the other guys have to vote for it and I’m confident that there would be enough votes to support the agreement and at the end even with virtually all of the Republicans voting against it,” he added.

Most Republicans, including at least two prominent Senate Democrats — Chuck Schumer and Bob Menendez — have opposed the nuclear agreement.

Democratic Senator Ben Cardin had predicted on Tuesday that there would be enough votes in the Senate over the agreement by the weekend.

PRESS T.V

R.S