Sens. Menendez And Graham Call For Bipartisan, Comprehensive Approach To Iranian Threat

June 8, 2021

(New York, N.Y.) — Last week, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) co-authored an op-ed in The Washington Post emphasizing the need for bipartisan policy consensus on confronting Iran’s malign behavior. Along with addressing Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, Sens. Menendez and Graham called for a comprehensive new deal that ends Tehran’s support for terrorist proxy forces like Hezbollah and authoritarian dictators like Bashar al-Assad, combats Iran’s influence in Yemen, and ensures justice for all Americans taken hostage by the Iranian regime.

Similarly, earlier this year, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) Chairman Senator Joseph I. Lieberman and CEO Ambassador Mark D. Wallace organized an open letter to the Biden Administration offering a path forward to address the Iranian threat in a bipartisan manner alongside other members of the P5+1 as well as allies and partners in the Middle East. The letter highlights the unique opportunity the U.S. has to build international support for holding Iran accountable for its malign behavior.

The UANI-led effort for bipartisanship, coalition-building, and creativity in diplomacy is supported by dozens of current and former elected officials, diplomats, foreign policy and national security experts, former hostages, human rights advocates, and retired military and intelligence professionals from the U.S., Europe, Israel, and Saudi Arabia.

UANI’s signed letter urges President Biden to apply the following common-sense standards in his approach to Iran:

  • No re-entry into the JCPOA along previous parameters;
  • No sanctions relief provided in exchange for mere negotiations;
  • Return to the “gold standard” of zero domestic enrichment or reprocessing by non-nuclear states, including Iran;
  • Insistance on full inspections and verification.
  • Resolution of Possible Military Dimensions (PMD) and undeclared nuclear activity.
  • Addressing of Iran’s unacceptable non-nuclear behavior as part of any new deal;
  • Return to bipartisanship in Iran policy;
  • Consultation with U.S. regional allies and partners most threatened by Iran’s malign behavior.
  • Release of all hostages.

To read “An Open Letter To The Biden Administration: A Path Forward For The P5+1 And Iran,” please click here.

To see the open letter in The New York Times, please click here.

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