Iran dealObama: Military option still on the table

In a letter to a Democratic lawmaker, President Barack Obama said the United States will continue to exert economic pressure on Iran, and keep military options available, even if a nuclear deal with Tehran goes ahead.

Obama, in a letter to Representative Jerrold Nadler (D-New York) said that if Iran rushes to build a nuclear weapon, “all of the options available to the United States – including the military option – will remain available.”

The Guardian reports that in the letter, first published by the New York Times, Obama also notes that the United States will uphold sanctions targeting Iran’s non-nuclear activities, such as its support for Lebanon’s Hezbollah group and what Obama calls Iran’s “destabilizing role in Yemen.”

“We have a wide range of unilateral and multilateral responses that we can employ should Iran fail to meet its commitments,” the letter says, citing the “snap back” provisions of the deal, which allow the United States and its European partners to restore sanctions in the event of Iran’s lack of compliance with the agreement.

The letter, dated 19 August, was sent from Martha’s Vineyard, where the president is vacationing.

The president, though, has continued his campaign to persuade Democratic lawmakers to support the deal.  So far, only two Democrats in the Senate — Chuck Schumer (New York) and Bob Menendez (New Jersey) have said they would vote against the deal when it comes to the Senate floor.

The only Republican senator who appeared to be wavering, Jeff Flake of Arizona, earlier this week announced he would vote against the deal, which means that all fifty-four Republican Senators would oppose it.

To override Obama’s veto of the Senate’s rejection of the bill, twelve Democrats would have to vote with the Republican block.

In recent days Obama has picked up important support from Democrats in recent, including Democratic senator Claire McCaskill (Missouri). She said on Thursday that the agreement was not perfect, but that it was obvious that “the world is united behind this agreement, with the exception of the government of Israel.”

In his letter to Nadler, who represents a heavily Jewish district, Obama stressed U.S. support for Israel, saying he views the country’s security as sacrosanct. He said he was committed to increasing missile defense funding and other military cooperation with Israel.

The deal with Iran, Obama wrote, “is a very good deal for the United States, for the state of Israel, and for the region as a whole … No administration has done more for Israel’s security than mine.”