Republicans, Democrats say that any Trump administration deal must ban all Iranian uranium enrichment
A bipartisan group of House lawmakers is urging the Trump administration to reject any nuclear deal with Iran that permits uranium enrichment, with 3 Republicans and 13 Democrats demanding that the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program be “totally dismantled.”
“We wholeheartedly agree that Iran must not retain any capacity to enrich uranium or continue advancing its nuclear weapons infrastructure,” the lawmakers wrote in a Friday letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, originally reported by Jewish Insider. “There is widespread bipartisan support for this requirement and we appreciate your commitment to this essential cornerstone of any agreement.”
The bipartisan letter comes as the Trump administration sends mixed signals on whether it will allow Iran to continue enriching uranium as part of a new nuclear deal. While Trump officials have publicly called for completely dismantling Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, news reports emerged earlier this week that the U.S. proposal to Tehran on Saturday allows limited, low-level enrichment on Iranian soil for an undetermined period.
In May, 177 House Republicans issued a joint statement reiterating the GOP’s longstanding support for a deal that prohibits Iran’s uranium enrichment and entirely dismantles the country’s nuclear program.
Some Democratic senators have also expressed support for completely dismantling the program. In an April interview with the Washington Free Beacon, Sen. John Fetterman (D., Pa.) said the Trump administration should stop nuclear negotiations with Iran and eliminate the country’s nuclear facilities with a military strike.
“Waste that s—t,” the Pennsylvania Democrat told the Free Beacon. “You’re never going to be able to negotiate with that kind of regime that has been destabilizing the region for decades already, and now we have an incredible window, I believe, to do that, to strike and destroy Iran’ nuclear facilities.”
The Friday group—led by Reps. Laura Gillen (D., N.Y.) and Claudia Tenney (R., N.Y.)—emphasized in the letter that “the Iranian regime must understand that the United States is unwavering in its demand that Iran’s uranium enrichment capability be totally dismantled.”
The lawmakers also asked the Trump administration to submit any agreement with Iran for congressional review as part of the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act. “For any agreement to endure, it must have strong bipartisan support,” the letter reads. “We urge you to engage with Congress as negotiations proceed to ensure that any final agreement commands broad support.”
“We appreciate your leadership on this pressing matter vital to America’s national security interests and stand ready to work in a bipartisan manner to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon,” the lawmakers told Rubio and Witkoff.
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