Biden on return of Iran deal: ‘Last thing we need in’ Middle East ‘is buildup of nuclear capacity’



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President elect Joe bidenJoe BidenTrump Hints at Possible 2024 White House Run, Tiger King’s Lawyer Believes Close To Trump’s Pardon Cruz Urges Supreme Court To Meet Pennsylvania Election Challenge MORE reaffirmed his desire to join the Iran nuclear deal if Tehran comes back into compliance, telling New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman in an interview published on Wednesday that the deal is essential to prevent a nuclear arms race in the Middle East .

“And the last thing we need in this part of the world is nuclear capacity building,” Biden said.

Biden and his advisers have previously said he would return to what’s officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action if Iran reverts to sticking to the deal.

President TrumpDonald John Trump Trump hints at possible 2024 White House run, remarks Trump threatens to veto Tech Liability Shield defense bill Tiger King’s lawyer thinks they’re on the verge to get forgiveness from Trump unilaterally withdrew from the Obama-era deal in 2018 and reimposed tough sanctions on Iran. In response, Tehran began to address the main limitations of the uranium enrichment deal.

In a September editorial for CNN, Biden wrote that “if Iran reverts to strict compliance with the nuclear deal, the United States will join the deal as a starting point for follow-up negotiations.

But hurdles have grown in recent weeks, which could complicate Biden’s plan.

In particular, regional tensions are resuming after the murder of a top Iranian nuclear scientist that Tehran blamed on Israel. Iranian officials have vowed retaliation.

Israel has not commented on last week’s assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, known as the father of Iran’s nuclear program, but it is widely believed to have executed it.

Asked by Friedman if he supports his September op-ed, Biden replied that “it’s going to be tough, but yes.”

Once the nuclear deal is restored, Biden’s team plans to continue discussions to address issues such as the sunset provisions of the original deal and Iran’s destabilizing behavior elsewhere in the region.

Earlier this week, Friedman wrote a column claiming that Biden should use the leverage of Trump’s sanctions to curb Iranian exports of precision-guided missiles throughout the region before joining the nuclear deal.

In his interview with Friedman, Biden appeared to reject this idea.

“Look, there’s a lot of talk about precision missiles and a whole range of other things that are destabilizing the region,” Biden said. But, he added, “the best way to achieve some stability in the region” is to deal with “the nuclear program”.



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