Republican and Democratic senators on Wednesday tied the Iranian regime to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, noting the hard line regime’s support of Russian President Vladimir Putin -- and linking the struggle for freedom in Iran to Kiev’s resistance to Moscow’s invasion.
The Senate briefing, organized by the Organization of Iranian-American Communities (OIAC), saw Democratic senators including Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J. and Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H. join Republican Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas and John Cornyn, R-Texas, offer their support to resistance groups in Iran in their push for a democratic, secular Iran.
Menendez told participants that "while the world has turned its attention to Ukraine, we cannot lose sight of the threat of the Iranian regime."
Menendez noted the Tehran regime’s support of Russia, which in turn has been using recent Iran talks to push its own demands related to international sanctions related to its invasion of Ukraine.
"The Iranian regime who remains one of the few countries to vocally back Russia’s completely unprovoked and devastating invasion of Ukraine," Menendez said.
"Just as Iran has worked hand-in-glove with Russia in support of the Assad regime’s horrific campaign against the Syrian people for the last 10 years, it continues to stand by Putin in the face of truly horrific actions,"
Menendez noted ongoing negotiations to bring Iran back into the 2015 Iran nuclear deal -- officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action -- from which the U.S. and Iran both left during the Trump administration. Talks are ongoing in Vienna but have stalled after the Russian delegation upended final-hour negotiations by demanding sanction immunity for any future trade with Iran.
