Fifty-nine members of the House of Representatives sent a letter dated Monday to Secretary of State John Kerry questioning the Obama administration’s $1.7 billion payment to the Iranian regime.
Iran is currently designated as a State Sponsor of Terrorism by the U.S.
“As this payment was announced on the same day, January 17, 2016, when Iran released five innocent Americans in exchange for pardoning or dropping charges against 21 Iranians implicated in serious criminal activity, we are concerned that this may only further incentivize Iran’s malicious behavior,” the letter, led by U.S. Reps. Ted Poe (R-TX) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), said.
The letter cited a general in Iran’s radical Basij militia who claimed that the money was taken in return “for the release of the American spies,” which the letter warned sets a dangerous precedent of giving a rogue regime more than $1 billion dollars to release prisoners. As a result, the letter said, radicals in Tehran and elsewhere will be encouraged to take Americans hostage.
Instead of payment, the letter says that Iran should be required to pay American victims of Iranian terror who still have outstanding judgments against the regime.
“Mr. Secretary, not only do we dispute the validity of Iran’s claims to this money, this $1.7 billion payment came only a day after ‘implementation day’ of the Iran nuclear deal, when the United States and its negotiating partners provided Iran with significant sanctions relief,” the letter said. “In presenting the nuclear deal to Congress, you testified to the House Foreign Affairs Committee that ‘we will continue to push back against Iran on every front available’ for its support for terrorism and other destabilizing activities.
“It is difficult to see how paying Iran $1.7 billion to settle a dispute caused by Iran’s belligerence upholds that testimony.”
Iran’s destabilizing behavior has only grown since reaching the nuclear deal, including the testing of two ballistic missiles, the firing of rockets near a U.S. aircraft, the continuing disruption of the region with arms shipments, and the brief detainment of 12 U.S. sailors, among numerous other acts of aggression.
“As you recently acknowledged, Iran will use some of the funds it receives in sanctions relief to support terrorism,” the letter said. “We can only assume that Iran will use this second influx of cash in a similarly destructive manner. It is our fear that in choosing to settle this dispute, and in reversing 35 years of standing U.S. policy as it relates to this case, the United States is treating Iran as if it were a responsible international actor and not the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism. Continuing to do so will only embolden the radicals in Tehran, putting U.S. interests, our allies, and innocent Americans at greater risk.”
The letter calls for the Obama administration to cooperate with Congressional inquiries into the matter and to provide all relevant documentation about the case.
The letter was also signed by U.S. Reps. Tom Marino (R-PA), Darrell Issa (R-CA), John Ratcliffe (R-TX), Jackie Walorski (R-IN), Ryan Costello (R-PA), Pat Tiberi (R-OH), Renee Ellmers (R-NC), Carlos Curbelo (R-FL), Chris Gibson (R-NY), Peter Roskam (R-IL), Bill Shuster (R-PA), Michael Burgess (R-TX), Leonard Lance (R-NJ) and Lamar Smith (R-TX).