Let's talk Iran - January 21, 2022
Iran’s regime is the ultimate repeat offender and the West must hold it accountable
The West is foolish to expect different results by continuing to compromise with the Iranian mullahs when they violate international norms. After 40 years of threatening the world’s stability, and hearing their hollow promises “to do better,” the Iranian regime must be held, finally, accountable for its actions.
Pressure from inside the country is far more likely to compel change from the regime than pressure from outside. But those two phenomena should work in tandem. In the year ahead, the international community should learn to work with the Iranian people, to highlight their struggles, and to support their activist efforts, in the interest of convincing Tehran once and for all that it can’t repeat the same offenses forever without losing everything. LINK
Iran's call for United Nations to punish Donald Trump over Qassem Soleimani's killing shows why the West must not appease the mullahs
As an example of breathtaking hypocrisy, you need look no further than the Iranian regime’s demand that the UN Security Council should take action against the United States, for the drone strike that killed General Qassem Soleimani in January 2020.
Under this tyrannical system they will do whatever it takes to cling to power, increasing repression, accelerating plans to build a nuclear weapon and spreading their version of Islamic fundamentalism across the Middle East. There is no advantage for the West in trying to negotiate with or appease this regime. To do so would be to betray the Iranian population who want an end to the mullahs and an end to corruption and oppression. LINK
How America Can Support Iran’s Democratic Voices
The United States and like-minded nations must commit to not only maintaining the existing pressure on the regime but increasing it where possible. The most effective way of expanding that pressure is by supporting the domestic Iranian opposition. That support can be expressed by guaranteeing all Iranians access to the internet. LINK
Biden Admin Obstructing Dozens of Congressional Investigations Into Iran Nuclear Talks, Sanctions Relief
‘Iran is richer, stronger, and closer to a nuclear weapon today,’ GOP says
"It is clear that the Biden administration, while not technically lifting many of President Trump's sanctions on Iran, is tacitly providing sanctions relief through lack of enforcement, to coax the Iranians to re-enter the failed Iran nuclear deal," according to the Republican report card. "Unfortunately, such a tactic only hardened Iran's will to stall in negotiations and step-up provocation." This includes sponsoring terror attacks during the past year on U.S. outposts and allies in the Middle East.
When former president Donald Trump left office following the toughest four years of sanctions on Iran in recent history, the country had just $4 billion in accessible cash reserves. One year later, Iran's foreign currency reserves have increased by 750 percent, congressional leaders determined. Tehran's illicit oil trade with China, Russia, Syria, Venezuela, and other malign regimes also increased by more than 40 percent during 2021.
"Biden's policy of maximum concessions," the Republican leaders say, "has only made Iran more aggressive in the region." LINK
Biden saves Iran from itself
Joe Biden is laying the groundwork for an even worse deal that would pour billions of dollars into Iran’s terror infrastructure and leave the regime on the threshold of attaining nuclear weapons. Try as his administration might to pass the blame, one man alone is responsible for this catastrophic policy failure: Joe Biden. LINK
Iran: Regime Strikes Defiant Tone as Nuclear Talks Near End
The regime’s uranium enrichment should be brought to a complete halt and its nuclear sites shut down. Unconditional inspections are indispensable to prevent the regime’s access to an atomic bomb. LINK
Congress Seeks To Reimpose Sanctions on Iran-Backed Houthis After UAE Terror Strike
Cruz and colleagues push bill to designate Houthis as terror group after Biden lifted sanctions
"President Biden made it an immediate week-one priority to unwind pressure on Iran and its proxies, including by lifting terrorism sanctions on the Houthis," a spokesman for Cruz told the Free Beacon. "This appeasement predictably caused Iran to escalate its aggression across the region, and in Yemen the Houthis launched a broad offensive within hours of the Biden administration’s announcement they would lift those sanctions."
Since the Biden administration removed the Houthis from the U.S. terror list last year, the organization has stepped up its attacks on the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and other American allies in the region. LINK
Iran reveals key details of Yemen Houthi attack on UAE - analysis
Iranian media claims ‘economic facilities and investments in the UAE are the Achilles heel of the UAE’s war in Yemen.’
Iran wants to remake the region and show that any country can be targeted with Iranian-backed weapons or Iranian proxies in Lebanon, Gaza, Yemen, Iraq and Syria. The attack on Abu Dhabi was a message to the region and the US, as well as the UAE. LINK
THAAD, in first operational use, destroys midrange ballistic missile in Houthi attack
The UAE used its U.S.-made THAAD missile defense system to intercept a mid-range ballistic missile launched by the Iran-backed Houthis.
Reminder: After taking office Biden's State Department immediately removed the Houthis from the list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations as a concession to Iran's regime. LINK
Iran: Did Raisi “achieve” anything in Russia?
The regime's "Look to the East" policy is not a breakthrough. On the contrary, it rather implies the mullahs’ desperation, clinging to anything at hand. LINK
What is Iran’s Revolutionary Guard doing in Myanmar?
Diplomats suspect sanctioned Iranian airline’s recent landings in Myanmar may have delivered weapons including guided missiles.
Diplomatic sources based in Southeast Asia who requested anonymity said that an Iranian delegation that landed in Myanmar on January 13 was either the second or third to visit since the military seized power and suspended democracy in a February 1, 2021, coup. LINK
Iranian political prisoner’s plea to human rights organizations: the full letter
"... my father and I were both transferred to the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) intelligence service for 40 days and were subjected to physical and psychological torture." LINK