Ted Cruz Criticizes US-Iran Agreement; It's a $6 Billion Ransom

Ted Cruz, the Republican senator from Texas, stated in a press release that President Joe Biden has reached a "secret nuclear agreement" with the Iranian regime that has been hidden from Congress and the American people. He referred to the unblocking of six billion dollars of Iranian funds in South Korean banks, saying that "there has been a side deal including a $6 billion ransom and the release of Islamic Republic agents." Cruz's reference is to the release of five Iranians imprisoned in the US, which the US State Department previously confirmed in a statement to Voice of America. These five individuals were arrested for violating US sanctions against Iran or providing illegal assistance to Tehran. On August 12, the US and Iran announced that under the reached agreement, five American citizens whom Washington claims were wrongfully detained by the Islamic Republic would also be released. The Islamic Republic of Iran confirmed in August that it had placed five American prisoners under house arrest. The United States named three of them as Siamak Namazi, Emad Sharqi, and Morad Tahbaz, but refrained from naming the other two whose detention had not been previously confirmed for privacy reasons. Cruz's statement noted: "These are just the general instances of the staggering concessions that the Biden administration is set to give to the Ayatollah, including the transfer of another $10 billion and, in fact, hundreds of billions of dollars through non-enforcement of oil sanctions. He has also allowed the Iranian regime to achieve a virtual nuclear arsenal over the past two and a half years." The Biden administration has rejected critics' descriptions of the unblocking of six billion dollars of Iranian funds in South Korean banks as ransom to Tehran. According to Washington, Tehran is regaining access to financial resources that were blocked under US sanctions and can only use them through a third party for humanitarian purchases under US supervision. The Deputy Spokesperson for the US State Department previously responded to criticisms labeled as "ransom payments to the Islamic Republic" by stating that "this process aligns with US policy to ensure that sanctions do not prevent the flow of essential goods and services to ordinary people—even in countries with problematic governments." The Deputy Spokesperson emphasized that the released funds would remain under "strict limitations" and stressed that the release of funds does not change the US position against the Islamic Republic's "destabilizing actions" and "human rights violations."