The United States, its international partners, and Iran will soon likely reach a final agreement to limit Tehran's nuclear program. Judging by the framework reached in April in Lausanne, Switzerland, the finalized deal will not only greatly enhance American and regional security by preventing Iran from building a nuclear weapon, it will also eliminate a source of great tension between the U.S. and Iran -- freeing America's hand to deal with other undesirable Iranian behavior.
Yet you can be sure that war hawks will be screaming "bad deal" -- insisting on a better one.
What they mean by "better deal" is one in which Iran completely capitulates, gives up its entire nuclear program and changes its bad behavior on a wide range of issues outside the scope of the nuclear program, all without the United States having to give up much in return.
But that's not really how negotiating works. Successful deals involve give and take. Most of the time, all parties walk away with something they like and something they don't.
Don't just take my word for it. Some of those closest to the negotiations agree. "[W]e do not live in a perfect world, and the 'better deal' proposed by the critics of the Lausanne framework is a fantasy," said Phillip Gordon, who, until recently worked on the Iran issue in the White House and is now a senior fellow and the Council on Foreign Relations.
Those arguing for a better deal also believe that if only the United States increased sanctions on Iran, Iran would agree to even better terms. But, as former National Security Adviser to President Clinton, Sandy Berger wrote recently, more sanctions would not have their intended impact. Instead, they "would mystify and alarm the rest of the world, isolating and weakening us. Such sanctions would crumble under their own weight -- amounting to, as Shakespeare said, "Sound and fury, signifying nothing."
Former national intelligence officer and Middle East expert, Paul Pillar, agrees. "[T]here is nothing in the Iranians' record to suggest that at some level of economic pain they would cry uncle and capitulate to hardline demands," he wrote earlier this year. "If this were possible, it would have happened by now after many years of debilitating sanctions."
While the "better deal" crowd may continue to crow, the reality is that there is an overwhelming consensus among the nuclear and security expert community that the Lausanne Framework is a good deal, a deal that the six powers can be confident will prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon. "When implemented," a statement from 30 leading nuclear nonproliferation specialists reads, the agreement "will put in place an effective, verifiable, enforceable, long-term plan to guard against the possibility of a new nuclear-armed state in the Middle East."
And it's not just the experts: Numerous polls show that a majority of Americans support the framework. Moreover, a recent survey done in conjunction with pro-Israel group, J Street, found that 59 percent of American Jews support the framework; a result that can perhaps mitigate concerns that U.S. Jews feel the deal could be bad for Israel. The poll also found that a 78 percent of American Jews support the agreement when additional details of the deal are provided.
It's rare to have such a large consensus on any particular issue these days. But it's no fluke that the White House, many in Congress, experts and the American people support diplomacy with Iran over war and will support a good final nuclear deal. I am hopeful that Missouri's Senators Claire McCaskill and Roy Blunt are part of that mix of support.
It is difficult to dispute that Iran is led by a dictatorial regime that oppresses its people, supports terror and wreaks havoc in the region. It is for these reasons that we should prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon and ink a good final agreement that is done on our own terms.
It appears that the six international powers and Iran will get past the finish line, but as the saying goes, "nothing is agreed until everything is agreed." President Obama has repeatedly stated that he prefers no deal to a bad deal. Fortunately, the negotiators are on the right track to resolve the Iranian nuclear crisis peacefully, allowing all sides to walk away knowing that what they're getting is better than they're giving up.