Cruz: Iran, US talks like ‘Munich in 1938’

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said late Wednesday that nuclear negotiations between the U.S. and Iran echo “Munich in 1938” — a reference to the Munich Agreement, which allowed the Nazis to annex territory in Czechoslovakia.

“I believe we are hearing echoes of history. I believe we are at a moment like Munich in 1938,” he said, while appearing on “The Hugh Hewitt Show.” “And indeed, Prime Minister Netanyahu’s address to Congress last week was Churchillian in its clarity and moral gravity.”

Hewitt had raised the example of the Munich Agreement, along with the 1994 deal struck between the Clinton administration and North Korea.

Under the 1938 pact, Nazi Germany was allowed to annex the territory. Later, Adolph Hitler invaded the rest of Czechoslovakia, and the deal is now seen as a misguided attempt on the part of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain to appease the Nazis. Winston Churchill was a major critic of the deal at the time.

Cruz was among the senators who signed a letter to Iranian leaders, telling them that the next administration and Congress might not honor a deal struck by Iran and the Obama administration over Iran’s nuclear program. The letter has been harshly criticized by the White House, which is nearing the end of negotiations with the Iranians.

The administration has said that any deal would have to freeze the Iranian nuclear program for at least 10 years — but many in Congress say that would not be long enough.