Obama Admin Wins Over Key Hawk on Iran Nuclear Talks [View all]

[Jesus Malverde]

Following a round of high-stakes talks on Iran's nuclear program in Geneva, the Obama administration is seeking to reassure lawmakers it won't give away the house in its negotiations with Tehran. On Friday, its chief nuclear negotiator Wendy Sherman won over a key Iran hawk, Rep. Eliot Engel, during a round of calls to the Hill.

"Under Secretary Sherman told me that the Iranians appeared serious in the recent nuclear talks in Geneva, but cautioned that the devil's in the details, and made clear that U.S. negotiators will remain clear-eyed as they seek to negotiate a deal to end Iran's nuclear weapons program," Engel, the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told The Cable.

A congressional aide said Sherman's assurances dispelled concerns that the White House would scale back its sanctions regime against Iran any time soon. "She was very quick to assuage any concerns that the administration was going to start unilaterally waving sanctions," said the aide. "She made very clear that the sanctions won't be moved until we see verifiable progress. The fears expressed earlier that the administration was going to give away the store don't seem to be well-founded."

The administration is also coming to the Hill with a second message: Hold off on all sanctions. A State Department official tells The Cable the administration wants to stave off new sanctions in the Senate designed to choke off almost all of Iran's remaining international oil sales. But it's unclear how receptive Congress will be.

http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2013/10/18/obama_admin_wins_over_key_hawk_on_iran_nuclear_talks