Statement by Daryl G. Kimball, Executive Director, Kelsey Davenport, Director for Nonproliferation Policy, and Thomas Countryman, Chair of the Board, and former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Nonproliferation and International Security, June 18, 2025
President Donald Trump is reportedly considering direct U.S. military intervention in support of Israel’s illegal attacks against the Iranian leadership, civilian targets, and the country's major nuclear sites. U.S. strikes would represent an abrupt and irresponsible departure from Trump’s pursuit of diplomacy and set back efforts to reach an effective nuclear agreement to block Iran's pathways to the Bomb.
Trump's failure to press for a cease fire, combined with his recent ultimatums that Iran must "unconditionally surrender" and accept the complete dismantlement of its nuclear program, make the negotiated solution he says he wants more difficult to secure and a wider war more likely.
If Trump orders U.S. Air Force bombers to strike at Iranian nuclear targets that Israeli forces are unable to destroy, including the deeply fortified, underground Fordow uranium enrichment complex, it will open the door to Iranian retaliation against U.S. and allied targets in the Middle East. This could, in turn, lead to a much wider, more deadly, longer-term conflict.
If the U.S. goes to war against Iran, especially without a thorough debate and authorization by Congress, which has the Constitutional authority to declare war, it would be an irresponsible escalation that could hasten, not halt, Iran's acquisition of nuclear weapons.
We strongly urge members of Congress and the President to choose nuclear nonproliferation diplomacy over war.
Military strikes cannot destroy Iran's extensive nuclear knowledge. Strikes can set Iran’s program back, but at the cost of strengthening Tehran's resolve to reconstitute its sensitive nuclear activities, prompting it to consider withdrawing from the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, and possibly proceeding to weaponization, a step it has not taken up to this point.
The consensus view among U.S. intelligence agencies before Israel's bombing campaign began on June 13 was that Iran had not made a decision to move forward on building a bomb, and was several months away, if not longer, from being able to assemble a crude device. There was no imminent threat that Iran was weaponizing its nuclear program before Israel's attack began.
Furthermore, U.S. strikes on Iran risk sparking a wider war involving U.S. military personnel, the disruption of global energy supplies, and the further loss of innocent civilian lives.
In the interests of American national security and international peace, we call upon the U.S. President, as well as all other world leaders, to immediately press Israel and Iran to halt their exchange of fire. At that point, Iran must allow the return of international inspectors to assess the status of Iran's nuclear activities and account for its nuclear material.
These prudent and practical steps will create the conditions for U.S. and Iranian negotiators to come back together to hammer out an effective, verifiable nonproliferation agreement that effectively blocks Iran's pathways to the bomb and delivers for Iran the economic and security assurances necessary to ensure the deal lasts.
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