Fortenberry Notes Iran’s “Proxy Military Actions”

Iran’s proxy military actions, support for violence, and ongoing ballistic missile taunting do not help

- Fortenberry

  LINCOLN - Congressman Jeff Fortenberry released a statement Friday following President Donald Trump’s call for Congress to make changes to the nuclear agreement with Iran. The President said Iran is not living up the “spirit” of the nuclear deal  and said the U.S. will deny Iran’s path to develop nuclear weapons. Fortenberry, who voted against the original Iran Nuclear Agreement in 2015, said Iran’s aggressive posturing throughout the Middle East has made it hard to trust a fragile nuclear agreement. Fortenberry: “ Iran’s proxy military actions, support for violence, and ongoing ballistic missile taunting do not help during this tender period of testing a new relationship with the West. Broadly considered, Iran has generally complied with the structural components of the nuclear deal, but the aggression sadly undercuts the broader opportunity for even the mildest rapprochement.” Fortenberry serves on the House Appropriations Committee and the Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis says his first priority on Iran, now that President  Trump has announced his new approach, is to confer with allies. Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon on Friday he wants to hear first-hand from allies in the Middle East and beyond, to understand better their views on what the Trump administration calls "misbehavior" in areas other than nuclear weapons. He was referring to Iranian support for extremist groups and its ballistic missile program, among others. Mattis says the U.S. intends to "dissuade" Iran from shipping arms to Yemen, where it supports Shiite rebels known as Houthis. He says this does not imply any U.S. military action but rather a sharing of intelligence with allies and partners who share a concern about Iranian behavior. Iran's government says U.S. President Donald Trump's claim that Iran has violated the spirit of the 2015 nuclear deal "has no international relevance or credibility." Tehran said the deal can't be renegotiated or altered. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has congratulated U.S. President Trump for his decision not to re-certify to Congress the Iran nuclear deal. In a statement released Friday, Netanyahu praised what he called a "courageous decision." He says Trump has created an opportunity to "fix this bad deal" and to roll back Iran's aggression. He encouraged all other relevant nations to do the same. Netanyahu has been a fierce critic of the 2015 deal, which lifted sanctions on Iran in exchange for concessions regarding its nuclear program. He has long warned that it failed to address Iran's support for militant groups who act against Israel.
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