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August 2023

Iran, Russia Evade Sanctions; Biden Administration ‘Funding Both Sides of Ukraine War’ by Majid Rafizadeh

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19867/iran-russia-evade-sanctions

The Biden Administration also tried to deny that it had issued another waiver to Iraq to pay $500 million to the Iranian regime. According to a report by the Free Beacon, the waiver was issued “a day after Biden administration officials denied Iran’s claims that the United States had paved the way for Tehran to receive the $500 million.”

The regime will most likely use the funds to further arm and assist Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, to brutalize its own citizens, to undermine US national security interests, to fund its terrorist and militia groups across the Middle East and to expand more deeply into Latin America.

“Of course the Biden administration lied that they wouldn’t waive sanctions on Iran just days before they did so. They know that by allowing money to pour into Iran, they are not only endangering the safety and security of Americans but also undermining everything they claim to believe about defeating Putin. They say that Iran is a terror sponsor and Russia’s top military backer, but appeasing Iran and getting back into a nuclear deal with the Ayatollah is more important to them. They are funding both sides of the Ukraine war.” — Senator Ted Cruz, Free Beacon, March 24, 2023.

Russia is learning from Iran on how to evade sanctions as well…. Examples include: “the switching of ownership of companies and properties to family members or affiliates, the use of trading companies to source foreign exchange….”

Russia and Iran have signed an agreement to build a sanction-proof $1.7 billion intercontinental rail system for global trade in an apparent effort to compete with the Suez Canal. To bypass sanctions, Iran and Russia in February 2023 also signed an agreement to integrate their banking systems.

Iran recently joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), headed up by Russia and China. The SCO will allow the mullahs to further increase their trade and revenues in spite of sanctions.

Last year, the Biden Administration issued a waiver that had been rescinded by the Trump Administration, permitting companies from Europe, Russia and China to advance work in Iran’s nuclear sites. This was most likely done in the hope of reviving the nuclear deal…

Only because of the Biden administration’s weak leadership, policies of appeasement and reluctance to seriously enforce sanctions have Russia and Iran been able to create so much devastation at such an unprecedented level.

China and Russia Eye Alaska A joint naval patrol off the Aleutians is a warning and a test for the U.S.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-and-russia-eye-alaska-aleutian-naval-ships-sullivan-a652c8b0?mod=opinion_lead_pos2

Americans who think the next major war won’t touch American territory might want to take note of the news that China and Russia conducted a joint naval operation last week near the coast of Alaska.

U.S. officials said 11 ships participated in the patrol near the Aleutian islands. It was the largest such operation analysts can recall and follows a smaller one in September 2022. The joint patrol underscores the cooperation between the two countries, which is extending to military operations beyond Beijing’s help for Moscow in Ukraine. (See Seth Cropsey nearby.)

The U.S. responded with dispatch, sending four destroyers and reconnaissance aircraft to shadow the foreign warships. That’s an improvement from the September episode, when a tepid U.S. response was criticized by Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan.

A spokesman for U.S. Northern Command said the Sino-Russian patrol wasn’t perceived as a threat, but one day soon it could be. In the new era of great power competition, Russia, China and Iran are building an axis to challenge U.S. power. The naval patrol is best understood as a warning that U.S. territory isn’t safe, as well as a test of how the U.S. will respond.

The world is getting more dangerous, and a complacent U.S. political class isn’t educating the public about the growing threats.