Oregon senator 31st to support Iran deal

WASHINGTON -- Oregon's Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley on Sunday became the 31st senator to announce support for the Iran nuclear deal, as momentum builds behind the agreement President Barack Obama's administration and other world powers negotiated with Tehran.

Merkley's backing puts supporters within reach of the 34 votes required to uphold a presidential veto of a congressional resolution disapproving the agreement.

A vote on the nuclear deal the U.S. and other world powers negotiated to curb Iran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief is scheduled for early September. The Republican-controlled Congress has until Sept. 17 to pass a resolution disapproving the deal.

Merkley said that while he thinks the deal has "significant shortcomings," it is the best strategy to block Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

"Because of these shortcomings, many have argued that the United States, instead of implementing the agreement, should withdraw from it, persuade our partners to set the agreement aside and work together to negotiate a better deal," Merkley said in a statement. "However, the prospects for this are slim. All of our partners ... believe that the current deal -- in regard to its central goal of blocking Iran's pathways to a nuclear bomb -- is sound. They have committed the good faith of their governments behind the agreement and intend to honor the deal as long as Iran does likewise, with or without the United States."

Republicans are unanimously against the deal. But with an overwhelming number of Senate Democrats in favor, some have now begun aiming to amass 41 yes votes, which would allow them to kill the disapproval resolution outright in the Senate and protect Obama from having to use his veto pen. Obama has said he will veto the resolution if it passes.

Thirteen Senate Democrats have yet to declare their position.

Only two Democratic senators -- Charles Schumer of New York, the third-ranking Democrat in the chamber, and Robert Menendez of New Jersey -- have opposed the deal so far.

Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., who is on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, plans to announce his decision on Tuesday. Among other Democrats yet to disclose a position are Maryland's Ben Cardin and New Jersey's Cory Booker.

While the Republican-controlled House has enough votes to pass a resolution rejecting the deal, it's unclear whether the Senate does. Assuming all 54 Senate Republicans oppose the accord, they would need support from six Democrats to get the 60 votes necessary to advance a resolution.

The only uncertain Senate Republican vote is that of Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who remains undecided and is expected to make her decision after Sept. 7.

In Iran, the country's deputy foreign minister said Iran's economy will strengthen regardless of whether July's nuclear agreement is implemented and international sanctions are removed.

Lowering dependence on oil revenue and increasing tax collection will boost Iran's economy, and the government isn't waiting for the lifting of sanctions to promote growth, said Majid Takht Ravanchi, who took part in the negotiations that led to the July 14 agreement.

"While sanctions relief is important to make the economy better, that is not the only instrument that the government has at its disposal," Ravanchi said in an interview Wednesday at his Tehran office. "If there are difficulties with your domestic economy, then no matter how much you gain from sanctions relief, it won't be enough to solve those problems in the long run."

The nuclear agreement, if implemented, will help President Hassan Rouhani's administration to deliver on the central pledge of his administration to end Iran's isolation and economic stagnation. Since it was announced, a stream of high-ranking European officials and trade delegations have visited the country, including from Germany, France and Italy.

British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond reopened the British Embassy in Tehran after it was closed four years ago after a mob attack. He was joined by executives from companies including Royal Dutch Shell Plc.

As new investors line up, Iran won't sideline countries who maintained business relations through the years of sanctions, Ravanchi said, referring specifically to China, Russia and India.

The agreement also allows for Iran and the U.S. to establish trade ties after sanctions are removed. The two countries haven't had formal diplomatic relations since the U.S. Embassy hostage crisis that followed the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Information for this article was contributed by Golnar Motevalli, Riad Hamade, David Lerman and Kathleen Miller of Bloomberg News and staff members of The Associated Press.

A Section on 08/31/2015

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