Sen. Jim Risch (R-Id.) charged during a press conference on Wednesday that not only is the Biden regime allowing Russia to work with Iran on a nuclear deal, it is allowing our two adversaries to negotiate together behind closed doors with no American negotiators present.
“It is absolutely stunning that this deal is being negotiated by two of our worst enemies on the planet,” Risch said. “You’ve got the Iranians and the Russians. They won’t even let the Americans in the room!”
Risch advised the Biden administration to walk away from the deal. “This is not right,” he said emphatically. “We should walk!”
News of Russia’s inclusion in the negotiations come after the U.S. and its European allies imposed sanctions on Russia for invading Ukraine.
“Mr. President, you’re the only one in America doing business with the Russians, stop doing business with the Russians,” Risch added, slamming his hand on the podium. “Don’t have them negotiating for us, walk on this deal.”
Other Republican senators sharply criticized Biden for working with Russia on a nuclear deal with Iran at the same time Russian President Vladimir Putin is invading Ukraine.
“This Iran Deal if and when it is announced will be a massive win for Vladimir Putin,” Texas Sen. Cruz said during the press conference. “Because the Biden administration has been eager to tell Putin and tell the Ayatollah of course we will have a carveout for the Iran deal on Russia sanctions which means Putin will make billions in oil and gas transactions, in nuclear transactions, and in weapons transactions.”
Cruz added that the Biden administration is “incoherently” announcing sanctions on Russia while also “creating a massive subsidy” for Russia which “makes no sense.”
The Texas senator echoed former State Department official Gabriel Noronha, who recently wrote in Tablet: “This isn’t Obama’s Iran deal. It’s much worse.”
Cruz said Thursday that Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran was “catastrophically dangerous,” but Biden’s incoherent deal is “even worse.”
Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wy.) noted that even while the Russians invade Ukraine, they are “doing the negotiations” on the U.S.’s behalf.
“It’s the Russians who are doing the negotiations on behalf of the United States,” he said. “You turn on the TV and radio and see what the Russians are doing in Ukraine. How in the world can we allow them to negotiate on our behalf?”
Senator Joni Ernst (R-Ia.) called the Biden Regime’s foreign policies “insane.”
“Russia, this is the country with tanks running over Ukraine right now killing innocent civilians,” Ernst said. “Children, women, people that we care about and yet they’re using those Russians to negotiate a deal with yet another one of our near-peer adversaries, Iran.”
Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) blasted Biden for seeking oil deals with U.S. adversaries, rather than enacting policies in the U.S. to open up energy production.
“What we have is an administration that would rather deal with international killers than with American drillers,” Hagerty said. “This my friends has to stop and we could stop it tomorrow. All we need to do is have this administration come out and clearly state that we’re going to reopen the Keystone XL pipeline. That we’re going to get back in the energy business. We’re going to become energy independent again. That we’re going to remove this massive lever Vladimir Putin has on the American economy.”