At the heart of the $6 billion in frozen Iranian money that has become a focal point of efforts by Oklahoma U.S. Sen. James Lankford and others to see it frozen in Qatar is oil. It is oil money and Lankford wants to reverse efforts by President Biden to ease sanctions against Iran, easing that allowed the country to reap billions of dollars in profits from the sale of oil.
Lankford joined South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott in introducing their Revoke Iranian Funding Act to rescind the general licenses that enabled the release of the $6 billion to Iran and prevent the Iranian regime from accessing and using the funds held in Qatar to finance terrorist attacks against Israel or any other nation.
The bill directs the Treasury Secretary to study all high-value Iranian assets around the world currently blocked by US sanctions and provide that information to Congress, ensuring Congress has the information necessary to enact further targeted legislation, if necessary.
“The Iranian regime has been bankrolling and propping up terrorists around the world for decades,” said Lankford.
“Months ago, President Biden softened the sanctions on Iran, allowing them to sell billions of dollars in oil. He also worked to get the United States and Iran back into the failed ‘Iran nuclear deal’ which gave even more leverage and expansion capability to Iran’s growing nuclear program and enabled them to continue to fund terrorist activities and anti-Americanism around the world. Enough is enough. Our bill re-freezes the $6 billion in funds President Biden allowed for Iran and makes sure we can keep necessary economic sanctions on Iranian terrorist sponsors.”
“The Biden Administration’s decision to release $6 billion to Iran—the world’s leading state sponsor of terror—was a grave mistake that created a market for American hostages, emboldened our adversaries, and put a credit on the balance sheets of one of Hamas’s biggest backers,” said Scott. “In the wake of Hamas’s horrific attacks on Israel, it has only become clearer that this rogue regime cannot be trusted as long they continue to support terrorist organizations. My bill is a comprehensive approach to wielding our economic sanctions tools against Iran by freezing the $6 billion and ensuring Congress has the information necessary to prevent Iran from accessing funds in the future. We must be unequivocal that the United States will not back down and waive sanctions on frozen Iranian funds held by other nations.”
Following the terrorist attacks in Israel, Lankford joined Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and 18 Senate Republicans in calling on President Biden and the State Department to immediately rescind the waivers that allowed Iranian funds to be converted and moved to more accessible bank accounts. Lankford also stood up with Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Joni Ernst (R-IA), leaders of the Senate Abraham Accords Caucus, along with a bipartisan group of Senators, to urge Secretary of State Blinken to make it the official policy of the US to freeze $6 billion in Iranian assets.
As a co-founder and co-chair of the Senate Abraham Accords Caucus, Lankford remains a leader in shaping US policy toward the Iranian regime amid their attempts to destabilize the Middle East region and the world. Lankford introduced two bills countering Iran’s global aggression. Lankford’s Deterring Iranian Support for Russia in Ukraine and Pre-empting Terrorism (DISRUPT) Act puts pressure on Iran for their military partnership with Russia, and the Sanctioning Transfers and Outbound Products to (STOP) Iran Act will prevent American products from enabling Iranian terrorism.
Last Congress, he introduced the Iran Sanctions Preservation Act, which aggressively targets Iran’s oil industry and financial sector. He led a successful motion last year to block the Biden Administration from re-entering the Iran Nuclear Deal. Lankford also introduced a bipartisan resolution reaffirming US support for the Iranian citizens who have taken to the streets in peaceful protest and condemning Iranian security forces for human rights abuses.
Joining Lankford and Scott in introducing the bill were Senators Mike Crapo (R-ID), John Cornyn (R-TX), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), John Barrasso (R-WY), John Hoeven (R-ND), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Steve Daines (R-MT), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Mike Braun (R-IN), Rick Scott (R-FL), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), JD Vance (R-OH), Katie Britt (R-AL), and Pete Ricketts (R-NE).
Source: Lankford press release
