Wicker questions Iran deal, opposes U.S. lifting any sanctions

• The Senate Armed Services chairman said the deal’s $300 billion reconstruction fund – though not funded by U.S. taxpayers – “would make Iran’s payoff under President Obama’s 2015 deal look like a pittance by comparison.”

Mississippi U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, expressed concern Thursday over the memorandum of understanding signed by President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

The powerful Republican chairman said in a statement that since day one, he has supported President Trump’s efforts to end Iran’s 47-year threat to the United States and the nation’s partners.

“I am concerned that the memorandum of understanding negotiates away the victories of Operation Epic Fury in ways that are completely out of step with the President’s goals,” Wicker said.

The Senator went on to question the deal’s monetary provisions, saying, “Specifically, the $300 billion fund for the reconstruction and economic development of Iran – though not funded by U.S. taxpayers – would make Iran’s payoff under President Obama’s 2015 deal look like a pittance by comparison.”

According to the White House, the funds would be made available should Iran hold up its end of the agreement. Vice President J.D. Vance has noted the funding would come by way of the Gulf Cooperation Council which consists of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

Wicker further said he believes it would be an error to force Israel to stand down against Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed terrorist organization that continues to attack Israel on its northern border.

This is not the first time Senator Wicker has questioned the efforts to end the conflict with Iran. Last month, he opposed the 60-day ceasefire out of concern over its impact on Israel. He noted a similar worry in the MOU.

“I also oppose the U.S. lifting any sanctions on Iran, or unfreezing Iranian funds, in exchange for Iran’s mere agreement to negotiate for another 60 days,” Senator Wicker added. “The Iranian regime has not renounced its ultimate goal — ‘Death to America, Death to Israel.’ The regime will invest every penny it receives to further that aim.”

Wicker said while President Trump has pursued peace through strength, “I hope the intermediaries working on this deal are not undermining that objective.”

Vice President Vance has been leading the negotiations with Iran. He has repeatedly said this week that critics of the deal, including Senate Republicans, should have faith in the President’s ability to secure the best outcome possible for the U.S.

“He is the person who has had the courage to fundamentally transform our relationship with Iran and with a lot of other countries over the last year and a half,” Vance told reporters at the White House. “He believes in this deal. He is going to see it to completion, and if the Iranians don’t comply, we still have every single tool and point of leverage that we have today.”

The administration has repeatedly stated that the motivation to engage Iran in the first place was to ensure the country could not develop nuclear weapons. While negotiations are being finalized, the signed MOU outlines that Iran will not pursue nuclear weapons and will hand over its enriched uranium.