With tensions rising with Iran, two Florida Republicans are slamming the Middle Eastern nation and warning about its nuclear ambitions.
From his perch on the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., worked with other Senate Republicans to bring out a resolution honoring the U.S. ending the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with Iran approved by the Obama administration.
“Iran’s ongoing nuclear misbehavior underscores why the United States was absolutely right to withdraw from the flawed deal. The people of Iran deserve better as they continue to suffer under the Iranian regime’s criminal corruption, massive economic mismanagement and systemic human rights abuses, in addition to its support for terrorists and the murderous Assad regime, ballistic missile aggression, and nuclear misbehavior,” Rubio said on Wednesday.
Rubio also weighed after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Iran is looking to change the agreement with the EU, China and other powers.
“The Iranian regime blatantly cheated on the flawed nuclear deal by hiding its massive ‘Atomic Archive’ for covertly developing nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles from international inspectors, and it is now moving to violate the agreement’s modest and temporary limits on its nuclear program,” Rubio said on Wednesday. “Iran’s ongoing nuclear misbehavior underscores why the United States was absolutely right to withdraw from the flawed deal, and also why the European nations and other partners must do all they can to reinforce the U.S.-led international campaign to impose maximum pressure against the regime in Tehran. The people of Iran deserve better as they continue to suffer under the Iranian regime’s criminal corruption, massive economic mismanagement and systemic human rights abuses, in addition to its support for terrorists and the murderous Assad regime, ballistic missile aggression, and nuclear misbehavior.”
Over on the other side of the Capitol Hill, U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., applauded the Trump administration for imposing additional sanctions on Iranian metal, including iron, steel and aluminum.
“I wholeheartedly applaud the Trump Administration’s imposition of additional sanctions against the dangerous, terrorist regime in Iran,” Diaz-Balart said on Wednesday. “As the leading state sponsor of terrorism, the Iranian dictatorship has been responsible for numerous terrorist acts across the globe. It supports terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah, plots assassinations abroad and even in the United States, destabilizes the already volatile Middle East, and violently oppresses the Iranian people. It also supports rogue regimes such as those in Syria, Cuba, and Venezuela, and threatens American troops and allies such as Israel.
“I firmly commend the Trump administration for its wise policy of isolating the mullahs in Iran through tough sanctions, a policy that began with the abandonment of the previous administration’s appeasement strategy and misguided ‘Iran deal.’ Iran is a direct threat to our national security interests, and we must continue to work with our allies to stop this dangerous regime and the revenue flow which it uses to spread terror,” Diaz-Balart added.
Kevin Derby can be reached at Kevin.Derby@floridadaily.com.
