Biden: Iran's nuclear program risks sparking Middle East arms race

In a speech Thursday to the European Parliament, Vice President Joe Biden said Iran's nuclear program "risks sparking a nuclear arms race in the Middle East."

He said that Iran's program violates its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Islamic Republic faces a "stark choice."

"Wouldn’t it be ironic - wouldn’t it be ironic as the Iron Curtain fell and the mutual threats of nuclear destruction diminished among the superpowers that a new arms race would emerge in some of the most unstable parts in the world," Biden said. 

"Tehran faces a stark choice: Abide by international rules and rejoin the community of responsible nations, which we hope for, or face further consequences and increasing isolation."

Biden said the U.S. and Europe "are standing side-by-side to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, a development that would endanger the citizens and menace its neighbors, including some of our closest allies."

The vice president also urged the European Parliament to support the Terrorist Finance Tracking Program, which was launched after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks as a way of identifying and tracking terrorists' whereabouts and assets. 

Earlier this year, citing privacy concerns, the European Parliament overwhelmingly rejected a controversial agreement that would have allowed the U.S. access to Europeans' banking information. Administration officials said at the time the absence of such an agreement would disrupt counterterrorism efforts.  

Speaking in Brussels at the start of a European trip, Biden called the program "essential to our security, as well as to yours – presumptive of me to say." 

Saying "I don't blame you for questioning it," Biden said the program has "provided critical leads to counterterrorism investigations on both sides of the Atlantic – disrupting plots and ultimately saving lives. It is built – it has built-in redundancies that ensure personal information is respected and used only for counterterrorism purposes.

"We understand your concerns," he said. "As a consequence, we are working together to address them, and I’m absolutely confident that we can succeed, to both use the tool and guarantee privacy. It’s important that we do so, and it’s important that we do so as quickly as possible."

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