The Gatestone Institute took apart the memorandum of understanding signed by President Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and concluded the deal lacks verifiable actions from the Islamic republic.
The institute’s Majid Rafizadeh wrote that the regime must totally give up its enriched uranium stockpile, completely dismantle its nuclear program, stop production of ballistic missiles and totally cut off support for terrorist proxies.
“Without ironclad enforcement mechanisms beyond three years, lifting pressure simply funds the same dangerous playbook that has destabilized the region for nearly 50 years,” he said.
The MOU extended a ceasefire for 60 days, eliminated the U.S. blockade, reopened the Strait of Hormuz to shipping, and allowed Iran to resume oil exports and keep its enriched uranium.
Additionally, the MOU “promised Iran $300 billion for reconstruction and investment — who cares from whom — and negotiations for everything else,” Mr. Rafizadeh wrote in his analysis.
He said the MOU, which also includes Lebanon, is nothing more than a deal to talk about another deal that the Iranian regime, its proxies and terror groups are celebrating about getting one over the “Great Satan,” the U.S.
“No wonder Iran’s regime is celebrating. … That was the U.S. response to blackmail and terrorism. Just as the U.S. was winning, it once again chose to lose,” he wrote.
He added that Iran is still calling for “the liberation of Jerusalem” and that “Trump is allowing it not only to remain in place, but to dig its hooks in even deeper” while executions of dissidents continue inside Iran.
Trump urged to keep pressure on Venezuela
The Association of Mature American Citizens wants Mr. Trump to continue pressing Venezuela to hold democratic elections and to ensure a genuine transfer of power to the Venezuelan people.
An analysis of the current situation in Venezuela from AMAC, a right-leaning advocacy and member organization for Americans aged 50 and older, said that while the Trump administration removed Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, the country is in a fragile in-between state — not yet free, though no longer under Mr. Maduro.
“Trump’s action did not magically restore democracy or rebuild Venezuela’s ruined economy. But it did break the illusion that the regime was permanent. It created an opening where none previously existed,” AMAC’s Ben Solis wrote.
He noted that Secretary of State Marco Rubio last January laid out a proposal for Venezuela that includes a three-phase process: stabilization, economic recovery and political transition.
Phase one used American pressure, oil sanctions and a maritime quarantine as leverage to keep Venezuela from collapsing following Mr. Maduro’s removal.
Phase two involved “fair access for American, Western, and allied companies while advancing national reconciliation through amnesty, prisoner releases, and the return of political exiles.”
“That framework is sensible, but it also underscores potential pitfalls ahead,” Mr. Solis said.
Phase three requires combining phases one and two to succeed, he said, with a new government framework “that can eventually return Venezuela to democratic legitimacy.”
“If Venezuela stops at the first two phases, the country may escape Maduro only to remain trapped under Chavismo with a softer face.”
Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro’s former vice president, is now Venezuela’s interim president. Mr. Solis said she lacks democratic legitimacy and that the underlying institutions of Chavismo, including the courts, security forces and state companies, have remained largely intact.
Chamber welcomes probe into German drug pricing
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce lauded a recently announced U.S. Trade investigation of German drug pricing but warned against imposing new tariffs or trade restrictions, which would ultimately harm the U.S. economy rather than fix the underlying problem.
The probe to determine if Germany’s drug pricing policies unjustly undervalue American innovation should “secure concrete reforms through bilateral engagement with Germany, rather than the imposition of new tariffs or other trade restrictions that harm the U.S. economy,” said Marjorie A. Chorlins, the Chamber’s senior vice president for Europe.
“Achieving a more balanced approach to valuing pharmaceutical innovation is critical to preserving U.S. leadership in life sciences, strengthening the transatlantic economy and sustaining investment in the next generation of life-saving treatments for patients on both sides of the Atlantic,” she said.
The nonprofit representing a network of business leagues, boards of trade and real estate boards said the three goals for a successful investigation should be to preserve U.S. leadership in the life sciences industry, strengthen the broader transatlantic economic relationship and sustain investment in future life-saving treatments for patients on both sides of the Atlantic.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer initiated the investigation under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 to “determine whether persistent underpayment for innovative pharmaceutical products by Germany is unreasonable or discriminatory and burdens or restricts U.S. commerce.”
An investigation under the federal trade statute section may occur if the rights of the U.S. under any trade agreement are being denied, or if an act, policy, or practice of a foreign government burdens or restricts U.S. commerce.
U.S. trading partners, including Germany, have long benefited from innovative medicines developed by American companies, while maintaining price controls that do not reflect the actual value of those medicines. Mr. Trump has used tariffs and other trade pressure to end what he calls “global freeloading.”
• The Advocates column is a weekly look at the political action players who drive the debate and shape policy outcomes in Washington. Send tips to theadvocates@washingtontimes.com. Click here to receive The Advocates in your inbox each week.
