U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), together with seven Republican colleagues, reintroduced the Iran China Accountability Act this week in a push to weaken Iran’s relationship with communist China and ensure that the United States not move forward with any nuclear agreement without congressional oversight.
The bill stipulates that U.S. taxpayer dollars could not be used to advance any Iranian nuclear agreement until Iran terminates ties with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) as well as with terrorist organizations like Hamas. The legislation would require that any nuclear agreement be ratified by a two-thirds vote of the U.S. Senate.
“Iran would love nothing more than to enter into another nuclear deal that props up their terrorist activity and also benefits their fellow New Axis of Evil partner – Communist China,” Blackburn said. “As Iran and the CCP commit egregious human rights abuses against their own citizens and Iran-backed Hamas enacts horrific violence against Israel, it has become increasingly critical that the Biden administration holds the Iranian regime fully accountable. There must be no nuclear deal until we can ensure our national security interests are protected.”
The bill would also bar any libation or expenditure of U.S. funds for a nuclear agreement until Iran cuts ties with so-called proxy forces in the Middle East, a title often ascribed to the Gaza Strip-based Hamas, which is currently embroiled in a war with Israel. Iran would also need to verify destruction of all its chemical weapons, materials and infrastructure. Further, China would need to cease the incarceration of Uyghurs.
If passed, the bill would require a report to Congress from the Secretary of State detailing any future agreement with Iran and how it meets each requirement noted above. In addition, contained within its pages is an explicit condemnation of Hamas-incited terrorist attacks against Israel.
Cosponsors of the bill include U.S. Sens. John Hoeven (R-ND), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Rick Scott (R-FL).