Senator John Hoeven, along with Senators Jerry Moran and Bill Hagerty, has urged President Biden to enforce oil sanctions on Iran as required by Congress. They also called for the permanent freezing of a $6 billion funding mechanism established in a September hostage agreement with Iran.
The letter was signed by several other senators including John Barrasso, Mike Braun, Ted Budd, Shelley Moore Capito, Bill Cassidy, Kevin Cramer, Mike Crapo, Steve Daines, Joni Ernst, Cindy Hyde-Smith, James Lankford, Roger Marshall, John Kennedy, Rick Scott, Thom Tillis and Roger Wicker.
In their communication to President Biden they stated: “We write to you during a time of global outrage and sorrow following Hamas’s unprecedented massacre in Israel which has left 1,400 dead including at least 33 Americans. Iran’s fingerprints are all over the events of October 7th and ensuing escalations across the Middle East.”
The senators emphasized that Iran has long avoided consequences for its role in funding terrorism. They urged the administration to sever financial avenues available to Iran and focus on halting oil exports.
They added: “We ask that you take immediate action to permanently freeze the funding mechanism established in September’s hostage deal with Iran. This $6 billion would free up money for Iran to use not for the well-being of its own people but for nefarious purposes in the region and beyond.”
The letter also demanded full enforcement of U.S. oil sanctions against Iranian exports. The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a drop in Iranian crude oil exports from 2.5 million barrels per day in 2017 to 400 thousand barrels per day in 2020 under a “maximum pressure” campaign which they claim diminished after 2021.
A Bloomberg report from September suggested that U.S. officials have privately acknowledged easing enforcement on Iranian oil sales—a move deemed unacceptable by these lawmakers given ongoing terrorist funding concerns.
The letter concluded with an appeal for prioritizing economic sanctions enforcement as Israel faces ongoing challenges: “As our trusted ally Israel endures devastation we must prioritize enforcing all economic sanctions and restricting Iranian oil revenue.”
