The No. 2 Senate Republican is offering staunch criticism of secret arrangements for inspecting Iran’s work toward creating possible nuclear weapons.
Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) on Wednesday said the fact that Iran would be allowed to effectively police its own compliance with the nuclear agreement at one military site was both “naive” and “reckless.”
{mosads}“This revelation only reinforces the deep-seated concerns the American people have about the agreement,” Cornyn said in a statement after details of the agreement emerged in an Associated Press report. “It is time for the Obama administration to come clean with the American people and provide all information about these secret side agreements between Iran and the IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency].
“Trusting Iran to inspect its own nuclear site and report to the U.N. in an open and transparent way is remarkably naïve and incredibly reckless,” he added.
Cornyn’s comments came after the AP reported the details of a draft version of the secret agreement between Iran and the IAEA outlining inspectors’ access to the controversial Parchin military site.
According to the AP report, the IAEA would need to rely on Iranian experts to inspect the military facility and take samples from just a handful of locations on their behalf. Additionally, the IAEA would have access to some photographs and videos of the site, though exceptions appear possible for “military concerns.”
The inspections regime is considered unusual, and has already been likened by critics to an athlete being allowed to submit their own urine sample to the league for drug testing.
Secrecy surrounding inspections for possible past nuclear militarization efforts at the Parchin facility has upset lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in recent weeks, and Wednesday’s AP report is only likely to further inflame tensions surrounding the so-called secret side deals.
The Obama administration has insisted that the secret nature of the bilateral agreements between the IAEA and Iran is typical for the organization, and is a necessary part of its ability to function as a neutral arbiter.
“We’re confident in the agency’s technical plans for investigating the possible military dimension of Iran’s nuclear program,” State Department Spokesman John Kirby said on Wednesday.
The seven-party talks aiming to place limits on Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of sanctions “endorsed” that the possible military dimensions of Iran’s nuclear work be “adequately addressed by the IAEA,” he added.