Top European Official in US Calls Iran Nuclear Agreement 'A Good Deal'
By Ian Bush
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The Iran nuclear agreement is being met with strong criticism by Republicans. Presidential candidate and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie wants Congress to reject it, saying President Obama is "playing a dangerous game with our national security."
But a top European Union official -- in Philadelphia on a trade mission -- calls it a good deal.
Crediting the pain of economic penalties for getting Iran to the table, David O'Sullivan, the EU ambassador to the US, believes persistence has paid off.
"It is possible even between countries that disagree as much as we disagree with Iran on many issues to find an accommodation on this issue," said O'Sullivan, "which is absolutely central to bringing stability and greater tranquility to the extremely disturbed Middle East."
O'Sullivan, making his first official visit to Philadelphia, spoke at the CBS Broadcast Center on Tuesday with members of the Irish American Business Chamber & Network and the British American Business Council of Greater Philadelphia about the prospects for the Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership Agreement between the EU and US.
"Philadelphia already exports about a third of its produce to the European Union, and we estimate it would be a significant increase if we do this trade deal because we'll take down tariffs and barriers -- so I think Philadelphia would benefit hugely from this deal," he said. "And looking forward to the future, we think Europe and the US could cooperate in areas -- for example, those in which we haven't yet developed regulatory standards. Take autonomous vehicles: we could develop trans-Atlantic standards which would become de facto global standards, rather than having others set those standards for us."
An open question: whether the White House can stomach selling another big trade agreement on Capitol Hill, after the protracted fight to win approval for the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
"My sense is talking to people on Capitol Hill is that people are much more enthusiastic about a trade deal with Europe," he told KYW Newsradio. "We have high labor standards, high environmental standards. So I think some of the issues which may arise with trade with the Pacific areas -- where there are bigger differences, perhaps, between the living standards of the countries than is the case between Europe and the US -- are not such an issue here. I really think this trade deal is a win-win opportunity for both the US and Europe."
Ambassador O'Sullivan also hailed the move to get Greek finances back on track.
"The economic health and stability of Europe is absolutely vital to the world economy, but also to the United States economy."
