Vance says 'United States wins either way' as he defends Trump's Iran deal against GOP skeptics

Vice President JD Vance pushed back Saturday on criticism that the deal signed between President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian would hand Tehran economic benefits without requiring meaningful changes in the terror-sponsoring nation's behavior.

In a morning interview on "Fox & Friends," Vance brushed aside concerns raised by Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and other Republicans who say Iran could eventually use the memorandum of understanding's economic incentives to rebuild its military and nuclear programs. The MOU is meant to serve as a framework for a long-term peace agreement.

"I like Roger, he's a friend of mine, but I think that he's wrong on this," Vance said. "What the MOU says is that if the Iranians behave over a long period of time, they could get some of the benefits of this bargain."

Critics on both sides of the aisle have charged that the agreement signed earlier this week misses key objectives for the United States, including the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear weapons capabilities and enriched uranium stockpiles, limits on its ballistic missile program and a requirement that Tehran end its support for regional proxy groups such as Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis.

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Wicker claimed that the 60-day ceasefire agreement set forth in the MOU undermines the United States' victories in Operation Epic Fury "in ways that are completely out of step with the president’s goals."

"Specifically, the $300 billion fund for the reconstruction and economic development of Iran – though not funded by U.S. taxpayers – would make Iran’s payoff under President Obama’s 2015 deal look like a pittance by comparison," Wicker said in a statement. 

Wicker argued that easing sanctions on Iran while requiring Israel to cease military action against Hezbollah is misguided, given the group's continued attacks on Israel's northern border and its backing from Tehran.

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"The Iranian regime has not renounced its ultimate goal — ‘Death to America, Death to Israel,’" Wicker said. "The regime will invest every penny it receives to further that aim."

But Vance said critics have incorrectly assumed Iran would receive economic benefits regardless of its conduct. Sanctions relief and regional economic aid would only be considered after Iran demonstrates sustained compliance with the agreement and abandons efforts to advance its nuclear program, Vance said.

"The United States has all the cards," Vance said. "The [Strait of Hormuz is] now open, the Iranian military is now destroyed, the Iranians have committed to, of course, destroying that stockpile of the rich material, but we have a lot of economic pressure applied to the Iranians that we would be willing to relieve if they do what we need them to do."

Vance said the agreement is already delivering tangible results, citing the movement of 16 million barrels of oil through the Strait of Hormuz on Friday after the waterway reopened to commercial traffic. He said the administration is focused on ensuring Iran is permanently blocked from restoring its nuclear program.

"We're going to go after that enriched stockpile of uranium," Vance said. "We're going to try to reset the situation that we have, so that the Iranians don't just have a destroyed nuclear program now, but so that we can say with some confidence, through a combination of inspections and verification, that they're never going to be able to rebuild that program."

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Vance also expressed confidence that a ceasefire between Iran and Israel would hold long enough for negotiations to continue. U.S. officials are preparing for talks involving Iranian, Qatari and Pakistani representatives, which could begin within days, according to Vance.

"There’s a fork in the road here," Vance said. "The United States wins either way, but I think that what ultimately happens from here is very much up to the Iranians."