Obama tells Senate Democrats to avoid further Iran sanctions

U.S. President Barack Obama affirmed his commitment to the Joint Plan of Action on Iran on Tuesday, and insisted that no further sanctions are needed unless the Islamic Republic foregoes its own obligations under the deal. In a meeting with Senate Democrats, Obama said the U.S. must stay on the current path toward a peaceful resolution of Iran's nuclear ambitions. "We appreciate the enormously beneficial partnership we've had with Congress in building the most effective sanctions regime in history," said White House Press Secretary Jay Carney on Wednesday. "But, now is not the time to pass a new sanctions measure because it might have the inadvertent consequence of weakening the sanctions regime and reducing the president's flexibility when it comes to pursuing a potential peaceful resolution to the Iranian nuclear program, and the challenge that presents to the United States and our allies and our partners and obviously to the P-5 plus one," he added. "Should it be necessary because of a failure by Iran to comply with its obligations in the Joint Plan of Action or a failure by Iran to reach a comprehensive resolution, the president will be very eager to work with Congress to see Congress take action in response to that, if it were to come to pass," said Carney. "But now we need to allow for the current negotiations to get underway and then to see whether they can make progress." Also on Wednesday, the Obama administration delivered the text of the Joint Plan of Action to Congress, including "technical details" that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has asked to be kept confidential. Although the document will not be made fully available to the public, Carney announced that "a detailed summary" can be expected later in the day.