Last year, I informed our partners and friends of a catastrophic agreement between Western powers and perhaps the most outspoken enemy of Israel. Recent developments in this story urge me to write you again on the matter …
The Obama Administration’s announcement of the Iran nuclear deal last summer met with simultaneous praise by the Administration is itself and an outcry of opposition highlighting critical dangers it sets in motion. Israel’s ambassador to the United States called it “a disaster” and “a jackpot for the Ayatollah regime.” William Kristol of The Weekly Standard called it “a deal worse than we imagined possible.”
Iran will have much more money and resources to cause trouble for Israel
In the long run, and even earlier than that, this deal makes the world a much more dangerous place by giving Iran a pathway to nuclear weapons. It also puts Israel and America’s other Middle East allies in a much more dangerous position in the short run. It pushes Iran’s main rival in the region, Saudi Arabia, toward acquiring nuclear capabilities of their own, serving to increase the existing instability in an already volatile region.
Among several other disturbing issues is that the deal means the phased removal of almost all economic sanctions on Iran. With the global sanctions upon Iran lifted, that nation will have much more money and resources to cause trouble for Israel and to damage U.S. interests in the region.
NOW—in recent weeks, disclosure of a $400 million cash payment from the U.S. to Tehran at the time four Americans were released in January has enflamed supporters of Israel and opponents of the deal.
It amounts to paying ransom for the release of American prisoners, which clearly violates U.S. policy. The Obama Administration rejects allegations that the cash was a ransom, saying it represented an initial payment on a $1.7 billion settlement to resolve a 37-year-old arms-deal dispute with Iran. Last week, however, the State Department conceded that it delayed making the payment as “leverage” for the prisoners’ release.
Sen. John McCain (R., Ariz), called it what it is, a “ransom” and said the Obama administration “added $400 million to the coffers of the world’s No. 1 state sponsor of terrorism at a time when it is actively working to destabilize the Middle East and undermine U.S. national security interests.”
Rep. Ed Royce (R., Calif) and chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee said, “We know it was a ransom. And on top of that, it put more American lives at risk. And we’ve emboldened Iran.”
An emboldened Iran is a serious threat to the Middle East, the West, and especially Israel. At a time when support for Israel is waning around the world, a strengthened Iran multiplies the danger for Israel.
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We’re committed to keep you and others informed about these developments and equipped to live prudently and victoriously in these volatile Last Days.
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