Kerry’s false and/or misleading statements on Iran

It is no surprise that Secretary Kerry had a rough time yesterday on the Hill trying to defend the deal over Iran’s nuclear weapons program. The administration’s deeply flawed agreement with Iran, which has yet to be implemented, is bound to wither under tough scrutiny. Kerry’s testimony offered up a number of embellishments that do not match up to reality:

“Under this agreement, Iran will forfeit all – not part, all – of that 20 percent [enriched uranium], that 200 kilogram stockpile. Gone…Under this agreement, Iran will have to neutralize – end – its entire stockpile of 20 percent enriched uranium.”

This is a misleading statement. The Iranians did not agree to relinquish or eliminate their stockpile of 20% enriched uranium. They say they will convert half of the existing stockpile of 20% enriched uranium gas into a solid form and de-enrich the other half down to the 5% level. The material converted into solid form can be converted back to gas for use in producing weapons-grade uranium within a few weeks. Any material converted down can be re-enriched up to 20% in 6 months at recent rates or in 2 months using full capacity at Fordow. This is not the permanent elimination implied by the statement.

“We will have access to [the] Fordow [uranium enrichment plant], a secret facility in a mountaintop that we’ve never been in.”

This statement is false. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been conducting periodic inspections at the Fordow facility since the US exposed it in 2009. IAEA inspectors first visited the facility on October 26, 2009 and most recently conducted an inspection there early last month. The “Joint Plan of Action” states that Iran would provide IAEA inspectors daily access “for the purpose of access to offline surveillance records” at Fordow. That is far cry from what Secretary Kerry was spinning.

“Now, sanctions relief is limited to the very few targeted areas that are specified in this agreement for a total of about the $7 billion.”

This figure has been criticized in recent weeks by outside experts for underestimating the likely value of sanctions relief that Iran will gain. It appears that the administration has come around to share that view. Haaretz reported today that, according to Israeli security sources, senior Obama administration officials “have conceded over the past few days in conversations with colleagues in Israel that the value of economic sanctions relief to Iran could be much higher than originally thought in Washington.”

“…[Iran] will not be permitted to grow its stockpile of 3.5 percent enriched uranium.”

Not exactly. Apart from the potential of undeclared activities, under the terms of the agreement, the Iranians would continue to produce 3.5% enriched uranium at Natanz over the six-month period and would eventually convert the material to solid form “when the line for conversion of [uranium gas] enriched up to 5% to [uranium oxide powder] is ready.” Iran’s stockpile of 3.5% enriched uranium will be permitted to grow and any conversion that Iran may undertake will be reversible.

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