Report: Joe Biden Wanted To ‘Gift’ Iran $200M After 9/11 ‘No Strings Attached’
President Joe Biden may have been cozying with Iran for quite a while.
In a recent report, titled “Joe Biden’s jaded romance with Iran,” Politico revealed how the Democratic chief executive wanted to “gift” Iran $200 million at that time — with “no strings attached” in the weeks following the 9/11 terror attacks in the United States.
The proposal was said to have been made by then senator Biden as a “grand gesture” to reinforce American-Iranian relations although the plan didn’t push through as “staffers immediately shut him down.”
“Seems to me this would be a good time to send, no strings attached, a check for $200 million to Iran,” Biden reportedly said at the time, Politico said in its report released Sunday.
Joe Biden Wanted To Gift Iran $200 Million Right After 9/11 ‘No Strings Attached’: Report https://t.co/IzzTv4vNMQ
— The Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) May 11, 2021
The report noted that the 9/11 attacks — which led to the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan — “helped improve relations somewhat” between America and Iran but the move of President George W. Bush to list Iran as an “Axis of Evil” nation in January 2002 “dealt a blow to the improving ties.”
Politico added: “In the weeks immediately after the Sept. 11 attacks, Biden — known for a lack of verbal discipline — suggested to aides … that maybe America should make a grand gesture of sorts to a region often suspicious of its motives.”
“Seems to me this would be a good time to send, no strings attached, a check for $200 million to Iran,” Biden was quoted as telling his staff, whom one responded: “I think they’d send it back.”
Biden also “spoke of how ordinary Iranians had organized candlelight vigils for the victims of the September 11 attacks, and how the countries had cooperated to some degree in Afghanistan” in a speech to the American Iranian Council following the 9/11 attacks.
“Biden even invited Iranian lawmakers to meet with him, wherever and whenever they would like,” it added.
“I believe that an improved relationship with Iran is in the naked self-interest of the United States and, I would presume to suggest, Iran’s interest as well,” the Delaware Democrat, said in a March 2002 speech.
TIL in the weeks after 9/11, Biden suggested to aides that maybe America should make a grand gesture of sorts to a region often suspicious of its motives. “Seems to me this would be a good time to send, no strings attached, a check for $200 million to Iran,” pic.twitter.com/OxNLYNlaus
— Alex Thompson (@AlexThomp) May 11, 2021
“A Politico review of available records, speeches, and congressional statements found that when it came to Iran, Biden has long tried to walk a careful path, one that is wary, yet hopeful; politically aware, yet politically risky; and often focused on incremental gains in the hopes of seeding long-term results,” the publication wrote.
President Biden was former President Barack Obama’s vice president when the previous Democratic administration struck a contentious nuclear deal with Iran — which was later on scrapped by the Trump administration after Iran failed to adhere to the terms of the deal.
“This was a horrible one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made,” then-President Trump said of the deal. “It didn’t bring calm, it didn’t bring peace, and it never will.”
The Obama-Biden administration notably handed Iran $1.7 billion in January 2016 as part of its agreement with Iran that time — including a $1.3 billion in cash.
But President Trump noted, when he took office, that the US’ agreement with Iran — which had the US paying Tehran US$1.7 billion was “defective at its core,” and that “Iran lied” about its nuclear weapon ambitions and continued to pursue its nuclear enrichment program even after the deal with the US.
Iran Has Started Producing Uranium Metal, in Violation of 2015 Accords, IAEA Says. It can be used for nuclear weapons: //www.wsj.com/articles/iran-has-started-producing-uranium-metal-in-violation-of-2015-accords-iaea-says-11612981889?reflink=desktopwebshare_twitter via @WSJ
— Senator John Cornyn (@JohnCornyn) February 11, 2021
Obama-Biden said at that time that the huge sum of money “was partial payment of an outstanding claim by Iran for U.S. military equipment that was never delivered.”
“Soon after, $1.3 billion in cash followed.”
The Daily Wire wrote: “Some experts believe that Iran never truly complied with the boundaries set in place by the Obama administration, and the Trump administration dropped the deal and reimposed sanctions on the religious dictatorship in 2018.”
Newsflash for Joe Biden:
"Iran reportedly offered the Taliban $1,000 bounties in 2010 for American soldiers’ deaths in Afghanistan. Not only was no action taken by President Obama at the time, six years later, he authorized the payment of $1.7 billion to the regime."
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) June 30, 2020
The current Biden administration, however, is currently in discussions with Iran in Vienna regarding a potential return to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal with the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.
