Renegotiating Arms Control Agreements: A Brief Review (CRS Report for Congress)
| Release Date |
Sept. 2, 2015 |
| Report Number |
IN10353 |
| Report Type |
Insight |
| Authors |
Woolf, Amy F. |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
Summary:
On July 14, 2015, Iran, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, China, and Germany finalized a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)--an agreement that restricts Iran's nuclear program in an effort to ensure that it can only be used for peaceful purposes. The Obama Administration and others who support this agreement have argued that the JCPOA represents the most effective tool available to block Iran's path to a nuclear weapon. They contend that further negotiations would not produce a better agreement and that, if Congress were to reject or alter the agreement, it would prevent a diplomatic solution. Some Members of Congress and others who oppose the agreement contend, however, that if Congress rejected the agreement and insisted on further negotiations the United States could conclude a better agreement. Some have claimed that, in the past, 'Congress has rejected or altered hundreds of international agreements, many of them multilateral.' Specifically, according to one analyst, throughout U.S. history, Congress has voted to reject 22 treaties and blocked another 108 by refusing to vote.
