Even before the “indirect” talks between the United States and Iran in Vienna ended, the Biden team relented, and the State Department said it was willing to lift sanctions on the rogue regime for rejoining the nuclear deal, giving all the leverage without getting anything in return.
Spokesman Ned Price said Washington is “ready” to lift all sanctions “that are inconsistent with” the Joint Comprehensive Action Plan. I would not offer details: “I am not in a position to give you chapters and verses on what they might be.”
And Price has repeatedly refused to rule out even the drop in separate sanctions imposed on Tehran for its terrorism program, human rights violations and ballistic missiles.
This cave came after just two days of indirect talks (with representatives from China, Russia, Germany, France and Britain as intermediaries) that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani sang were already a “success”.
The Europeans tried to get the Biden team to lift some sanctions in its first days in office, but the president said Tehran should move first, re-complying with the agreement by ending 20% uranium enrichment and stopping its production of uranium metal – which even Europeans have condemned, as it has no civilian use.
President Donald Trump’s campaign to put pressure almost brought the regime to its knees, especially after the Iranian people revolted after seeing the regime spend nuclear deal money on military adventurism and terrorism instead of feeding the its own citizens. Biden is about to give up this leverage and allow the regime the resources to commit even more acts of harm.
It is especially unpleasant given the ridiculous offers Tehran made before the talks began.
The Europeans, in consultation with the Biden team, offered the release of $ 1 billion in frozen revenue in exchange for Iran freezing its 20% enriched uranium production. Tehran rejected it and demanded that America release all of its frozen export revenue, estimated at more than $ 30 billion, in exchange for a one-month pause in production. Washington rejected this ridiculous idea and proposed counter-releasing some frozen funds and some oil export exemptions in exchange for Iran stopping 20% production and its work on advanced centrifuges. Once again, Iran rejected the idea.
Why the hell would the Biden team respond by giving away the farm? There is no reason to rush: the provisions on the termination of the nuclear deal allow Iran to become operational within a maximum of a decade. It is Tehran that must hurry, as it can only do business with tyrannies like China and Venezuela until America lifts its sanctions.
And the regime’s misdeed is not limited to its pursuit of nuclear weapons or even its terrorism in the Middle East. In February, a Belgian court convicted an Iranian diplomat of plotting to bomb a dissident rally near Paris in 2018, and Tehran planned and approved the scheme.
Now Biden is willing to give Iranian rulers more billions to play with, all to preserve the “legacy” of his former boss. But the only legacy of legitimizing these monsters will be more murder.