Top officials from the Obama Administration, including Biden, held secret meetings with Foreign Minister of Iran, Mohammad Javad Zarif, during Donald Trump’s presidency in order to undermine his pressure campaign on Tehran, reports The Washington Times, and to set the stage for relations with Iran should a Democrat win the election.
Officials who met with Zarif during Trump’s presidency include:
- Robert Malley, Middle East adviser to Obama
- John Kerry, Secretary of State to Obama
- Ernest Moniz, Energy Secretary to Obama
Notably, all three men played key roles in negotiating the nuclear deal with Iran (known as the JCPOA). Kerry and Malley are back in the White House now. The former serves as “climate adviser” and the latter as special envoy for Iran policy at the State Department. Moniz has been nominated to serve as deputy secretary of state.
William Burns and Jake Sullivan, who led “back channel” communications with Tehran before the JCPOA was signed, have been tapped for CIA director and national security adviser, respectively. Burns hopes to achieve back channel talks with North Korea soon.
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It is important to note that while Obama officials were cozying up to Zarif, Tehran was supporting plots to kill American soldiers in Iraq and using money it received through the JCPOA to aid terrorist organizations Hezbollah and Hamas.
“It is not good practice for senior officials who served at the highest levels of a former administraiton, Democratic or Republican, to be trying to undermine the policy of a sitting administration by engaging actively with a known enemy of the United States,” warns Mark Dubowitz, chief executive at the Washington-based think tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “That’s especially true when multiple administrations have determined that this enemy is the leading state sponsor of terrorism.”
In his defense, Kerry says he met with Zarif in order to find out “what Iran might be willing to do in order to change the dynamic in the Middle East for the better.” Kerry claims his meetings with Zarif were not secret.
Malley, who met with Zarif after Trump withdrew from the JCPOA, urged Tehran to wait out Trump’s presidency with hopes that a Democrat would take his place in 2021 and restore the nuclear deal. Malley claims the meetings were just part of his “regular contacts with all parties.”
Zarif, on the other hand, acknowledged his cooperation with a network Iran apologists who support the JCPOA. This network includes liberal university professors, think tanks, Democratic lawmakers, and the National Iranian American Council (which is widely considered to be Tehran’s lobbying arm in the US).
As reported in 2017 by the Washington Free Beacon, NIAC co-founder Trita Parsi visited the White House 33 times to meet with Malley and other Obama officials.
“America is not just a government in the White House,” says Zarif. “America is a collection of public opinion, pressure groups, and studies. These factors are pushing politics forward.”
Democrats’ illegal cooperation with Zarif could be a factor in Trump’s failure to convince Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan to open a channel of communication with Iran during the September 2019 UN General Assembly.
The JCPOA prevents Iran from building a nuclear bomb by imposing restrictions on uranium enrichment in exchange for the removal of economic sanctions. What really happened is that Iran gained access to vast sums of money that it used to further its nuclear program and aid terrorist organizations. Trump withdrew from the JCPOA in 2018 following an Israeli raid that uncovered a large cache of secret nuclear files proving that Iran had continued its nuclear programs in spite of the JCPOA. Earlier this month, Iran confirmed it had resumed 20% uranium enrichment.
Author’s Note: Members of the Biden Administration knowingly interfered with Trump’s foreign policy and obtained aid from Iran in the elections. This is a massive and unforgivable crime for which Congress should impeach President Joe Biden.
Sources:
Biden team colluded with Iran to foil Trump diplomacy
Biden CIA pick led secret ‘back channel’ negotiations for Iran deal
New CIA nominee favors back-channel talks with North Korea and Iran nuclear deal