WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), joined his colleagues in sending three letters to President Biden, calling for the enforcement of sanctions on Iranian steel exports and oil sales. The letters were sent weeks after Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel.

The first letter, led by U.S. Senator Katie Boyd Britt (R-AL), implores the President to target Iran’s steel and metal industries by enforcing all direct sanctions on Iran and secondary sanctions on other countries who seek economic engagement with them. In September 2023, the World Steel Association announced Iran is the 10th largest steel producer in the world.

“In 2020, the United States sanctioned Iran’s metals industries and steel producers, massively impacting their exports the following year. The enforcement of these sanctions decreased Iranian steel exports from 9 million metric tons in 2020 to 4.2 million tons in 2021,” the senators wrote.  “However, Iranian steel exports rebounded to 10 million tons in 2022.  This correlates to the United States reengaging with Iran to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), along with a decrease in enforcement of existing sanctions by the Treasury Department.”

“Sanctions enforcement, when executed properly, is an effective tool against regimes that do not share our values and, as in Iran’s case, have a proven track record of sponsoring terrorism. In this instance, relaxing sanctions enforcement resulted in economic enrichment for the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism,” the senators continued.

Additional cosigners include U.S. Senators Tim Scott (R-SC),  Mike Crapo (R-ID), Marco Rubio (R-FL), John Barrasso (R-WY), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Mike Braun (R-IN), John Boozman (R-AR), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Steve Daines (R-MT), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), John Hoeven (R-ND), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Ron Johnson (R-WI), John Kennedy (R-LA), James Lankford (R-OK), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Rick Scott (R-FL), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), John Thune (R-SD), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), and Todd Young (R-IN).

To prevent further atrocities and fulfill the promise of providing unwavering support to the United States’ most important ally in the Middle East, Senator Cramer also joined U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Bill Hagerty’s (R-TN) letter to President Biden regarding the lack of enforcement of sanctions on Iranian oil.  Specifically, the senators urge the Biden administration to take immediate action to sever financial avenues available to Iran, specifically cracking down on oil exports.

“Blocking the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism from accessing this $6 billion – rescinding or revising all waivers and licenses involved – will hinder the regime’s ability to support the death and destruction of our allies,” the senators wrote. “We also demand that you take immediate action to fully enforce U.S. oil sanctions and interdict Iranian oil exports.”

“The world is now seeing the direct result of allowing Iran’s oil revenues to grow and unfreezing billions of dollars in its extraterritorial bank accounts. Congress has a responsibility to ensure sanctions are not only on the books but enforced to the fullest extent. As our trusted ally Israel endures devastation, we must prioritize enforcing all economic sanctions and restricting Iranian oil revenue,” the senators concluded.

Additional cosigners include U.S. Senators John Barrasso (R-WY), Mike Braun (R-IN), Ted Budd (R-NC), Shelley Moore Capito (R- WV), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Steve Daines (R-MT), Joni Ernst (R-IA), John Hoeven (R-ND), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), James Lankford (R-OK), Roger Marshall (R-KS), John Kennedy (R-LA), Rick Scott (R-FL), Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Roger Wicker (R-MS).

Senator Cramer also joined U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn’s (R-TN) letter to President Joe Biden and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken regarding the expiration of a sanctions waiver on Iranian electricity imports, which unlocked $10 billion in frozen assets for Iran to access.

“As we unfortunately learned after the October 7th attacks on Israel, money is a fungible asset. Giving Iran access to another $10 billion will only allow them to reallocate more funding from other sources to support terrorism. Additionally, you have placed no conditions on where this money must be kept, giving Tehran a direct line of access to cash that will allow them to continue fueling their proxy war against our allies,” wrote the senators. “It is unconscionable that, just over two months after you gifted the Iranian regime a $6 billion ransom payment, you are allowing the electricity imports sanctions waiver to expire, unlocking another $10 billion in frozen assets for Iran to access.”

“Your continued pursuit of desperate diplomacy with our adversaries is reckless, and it raises serious questions about this administration’s blatant disregard for our national security. Do you believe it is in the United States’ best interest to appease Iran while ignoring their calls for the destruction of the U.S. and Israel? If the answer is no, then you cannot simultaneously deal direct support to them in any form. You must immediately rescind this waiver and prevent Iran’s unrestricted access to these funds,” the senators concluded.

Additional cosigners include U.S. Senators John Thune (R-SD), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Dan Sullivan (R-AK).