Military inspections must be a non-negotiable part of Iran’s nuclear deal

It is probably safe to say that the negotiations with Iran aren’t going very well. As the 30 June deadline for a final agreement looms America’s top negotiator Wendy Sherman has just announced that she will resign shortly after, telling the New York Times that it has been ‘two long years’ in that position. Meanwhile the Iranians are now saying that they want the deadline for reaching an agreement extended, with the Obama administration insisting that’s not an option. To make matters worse unconfirmed reports have recently emerged claiming that a delegation of North Korean nuclear weapons experts have been paying regular visits to Iranian military facilities. These being the same military sites that the French government is now arguing must be put under inspection as part of the terms for any final agreement.

Critics of President Obama’s diplomatic outreach to Iran have for some time now claimed that the Iranians are simply using ongoing negotiations to buy time for advancing the regime’s nuclear programme.