Rich Zeoli Talks To La Salle Foreign Policy Analyst About Iranian Nuclear Agreement
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Rich Zeoli talked to Ed Turzanski, the John Templeton Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute and La Salle University's Assistant Vice-President for Government and Community Relations, on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT about the nuclear agreement reached between Iran and the western powers.
Turzanski pointed out nothing is finalized yet, this is just the first major hurdle that has been overcome.
"It is a framework that they intend to work on in June to try to come up with concrete steps to provide verification for elements that are supposed to be put in play where, in return for dropping sanctions, the Iranians will agree to do certain things."
He criticized the Obama Administration for making this deal that he thinks will allow Iran the space to produce their own nuclear weapons.
"Just a couple months ago, the President said Iran will never get a nuclear weapon and now he's saying this will help us push them so they're at least a year away from doing it. He is, in effect, recognizing that Iran is a nuclear threshold state. We're not going to do anything about it and today the Mullah's have to be very happy. They got just about everything they wanted."
Turzanski believes the agreement will push other countries in the Middle East to pursue their own nuclear capabilities.
"America's traditional allies in the region, the Egyptians, the Saudi's, the Israeli's, the Jordanian's, the other Gulf Arabs look at this and say, 'it is complete. The United States has capitulated to the Iranians.' They want to reorient policy in favor of Iran...You will see those other states, including Turkey, that will all now start developing their own "peaceful nuclear programs." In fact, they're going to be out to acquire their own bomb."