Europe Lifting Iran Sanctions Unilaterally

The European states involved in the nuclear negotiations with Iran warned the US Congress to approve the agreement or the Europeans would lift the sanctions against the Islamic Republic unilaterally, according to an American political commentator in Indiana, according to PRESS T.V.

E. Michael Jones, former professor and editor of Culture Wars magazine, made the remarks during an interview with Press TV on Thursday while commenting on Republican lawmakers’ statements against the Iran nuclear agreement, reached between Iran and the P5+1 — the US, Britain, Russia, China, France, and Germany — in Vienna in mid-July.

The Republican-controlled Congress is reviewing the nuclear agreement and has until September 17 to vote to either approve or disapprove of it.

On Thursday, Democrats blocked a Republican resolution to reject the deal, ensuring that the historic agreement can be implemented without President Barack Obama having to use his veto power.

But, Republicans refused to concede defeat and said the Senate will vote on the Iran deal next week one more time.

Jones said that Republicans cannot stop the historic Vienna accord now. “This is all just hollow posturing on the part of the Republicans for money from the Israel lobby primarily but also trying to create some type of issue for the upcoming presidential election.”

Some Republican presidential candidates, such as Marco Rubio, have said that if they become the US president, they will strike down the Iran nuclear agreement and reimpose sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

“No new incoming administration would abrogate a treaty that was created by the previous administrations. That’s not the way the United States’ government works that would destroy the continuity of the United States’ government,” Jones said.

 “But secondly there is a more important issue. Why did all of these people decided to line up with the Obama administration in the favor of the agreement?” he asked.

 “The main reason is because the European component to this deal sent a delegation to the United States’ Congress and said ‘if you do this [disapprove of the agreement], we’re leaving, we’re out of here, we’re going to lift the sanctions unilaterally,’” he stated.

 “And that carried the day with these people because they know that the United States can’t continue this without them. The United States is powerless at this point to uphold the sanctions. So they have to go along. That’s how the Congress is going along. Republicans know this. They were in on the briefing,” the journalist noted.

 “But they are still using this demagoguery for Israel lobby money and also to position themselves for some type of reaction against the Obama administration when the next election comes up.”

Republican senators, who only a few months earlier vowed to muster 67 votes to override a presidential veto, on Thursday fell two votes short needed to break a Democratic filibuster, which is a tactic that involves legislators obstructing the passage of a bill by speaking at inordinate length when the measure is debated.

This means the legislation aimed at sabotaging the historic agreement is essentially dead, and that the deal will now take effect without a veto showdown between the Republican-controlled Congress and the Obama administration.

The Obama administration has gained this resounding victory over its opponents, despite the Israel lobby’s massive campaign to defeat the historic nuclear agreement.

R.S