U.S. Energy Secretary: The Nuclear Agreement with Iran Will Definitely Be Implemented

Ernest Moniz, the U.S. Energy Secretary, provided explanations during a press conference at the White House on Friday, August 9, regarding his meeting with congressional representatives. He stated that he is confident the nuclear agreement with Iran will be implemented and that Congress will approve it. Moniz emphasized that the nuclear agreement with Iran provides a 'robust and precise verification mechanism' for monitoring Iran's nuclear program. He said, 'To be very clear, I am very pleased that members of Congress are evaluating and reviewing the public and confidential documents presented (regarding the agreement with Iran) with this level of detail.' The U.S. Energy Secretary added, 'I think the agreement will definitely be implemented.' Iran and six world powers reached an agreement on Tehran's nuclear program on July 14 of this year. Under this agreement, Iran agreed to impose significant restrictions on its nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions against it. Moniz, who has defended the nuclear agreement in Congress over the past two weeks, responded to a question about whether 'in meetings with congressional representatives opposed to the nuclear agreement with Iran, they presented an alternative to this agreement?' by saying, 'Honestly, I have not seen anything like that so far. At the very least, I can say that a replacement as strong as the (nuclear) agreement has not yet been presented.' The U.S. Energy Secretary added, 'If we reject this agreement, it will be very hard to imagine that such an action will not have negative consequences; we will see very negative consequences (of rejecting the agreement) very quickly.' He also noted his scientific background since 1978 regarding nuclear activities, stating that the nuclear agreement with Iran is the best option to prevent this country from acquiring nuclear weapons. During the press conference, Josh Earnest, the White House spokesperson, referred to the U.S. government's efforts to inform the public about the nuclear agreement with Iran, stating that the more people know about this agreement, the more they will support it. Meanwhile, the White House spokesperson clarified discussions regarding the secret agreement between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), stating that the Agency has provided explanations regarding the secret agreement to U.S. negotiators and Wendy Sherman, the Deputy Secretary of State. Josh Earnest, in response to a question about Republican criticisms of the Agency's ability to verify Iran's potential activities in the 'Parchin' area and interviews with Iranian nuclear scientists, said that since many critics likely lack scientific familiarity with these issues, their criticism of the IAEA is 'not credible.' He emphasized that the Agency has the necessary tools to verify Iran's nuclear program.