Letter to Ernest Moniz, Secretary of Energy - Clarify Knowledge of Secret Side Deals

Letter

Dear Secretary Moniz:

Thank you for taking the time last week to brief Congress on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) regarding Iran's nuclear program. We hope you share our belief that it is vitally important for Congress to fully understand every detail of this agreement and review every associated document.

During the briefing, one of us (Congressman Pompeo) had an opportunity to dialogue with Secretary Kerry about two separate side agreements concerning the "roadmap for the clarification of past and present outstanding issues regarding Iran's nuclear program" that were agreed to by both the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Iran. The questions were directed to Secretary Kerry and another colleague on the panel. Each of them denied both (a) that they had read the documents, and (b) that the United States government is in possession of copies of them.

You did add a comment to Secretary Kerry's answer to the inquiry about the side deals, but you did not indicate that you had read the documents, nor did you state that you had not read the documents. It has now been reported to us that you have read the two side agreements. The report of you having read the document could be inaccurate. If, however, you have read the side agreements, we would have expected you to have volunteered this answer during the briefing to hundreds of members of Congress.

We request that you to clarify the following:

1. Have you read the two side agreements between the IAEA and Iran relating to Parchin and the PMD issue?

2. If so, when did you read them?

3. Do you, the Department of Energy or anyone inside the United States government have a copy the two agreements?

4. If you have not read the final agreements, did you read a drafter version of the agreements?

5. Did you receive a briefing on the contents of the agreements? If so, from whom? And when did you receive that briefing? Who else was present for those briefings? What were you told?

6. Can you provide a copy of these two side agreements to Congress?

Members of Congress have a legal right to all "annexes, appendices, codicils, side agreements, implementing materials, documents, and guidance, technical or other understandings and any related agreements, whether entered into or implemented prior to the agreement or to be entered into or implemented in the future." We have not been provided these two secret side deals. To ask a member of Congress to vote on what will be the most important matter that comes before us this year, without knowing the full contents of the agreements, is unfair. As elected representatives, we each possess a duty to know what it is we are voting on and to have access to every term and every word in the deal. This is especially so on the central items with respect to how we will verify that the world's largest state sponsor of terror is not cheating or lying about Parchin and on its previous military nuclear efforts.

We would be happy to receive your response to this inquiry in writing or to speak with you by phone. Perhaps still better would be the chance to meet face to face. We will accommodate your schedule to the best of our ability to achieve this outcome.

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