(FreedomBeacon.com)- Talks between the United States and Iran to revive the 2015 nuclear deal are still ongoing, but reports about what’s included in the deal should scare many people.
In fact, some of the biggest beneficiaries of the proposed nuclear deal are nuclear companies that are controlled by Russia.
A document that was authored by the U.S. government and reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon reveals that some of these companies could gain billions in new revenue as part of a new deal being negotiated between Iran and the Biden administration.
This revenue would come in the form of sanctions waivers the firms would receive so they can help to build the nuclear infrastructure in Iran.
Rosatom, an energy firm controlled by Russia, and at least four subsidiaries that it has would receive waivers for sanctions under the deal. That would allow them to complete projects dealing with nuclear energy in Iran.
The document the Free Beacon reviewed was authored back in 2019 under the Trump administration. It details all the entities from Russia that are involved in the projects, and they total more than $10 billion.
A new nuclear deal hasn’t been agreed to yet, but the Biden administration all along has been guaranteeing Russian firms that they wouldn’t face any sanctions for work they were doing at nuclear sites in Iran. This is being done as many western countries have imposed serious economic sanctions on Russia as a result of its invasion of Ukraine.
Many people have pointed out recently how Iran could end up turning into a “sanctions evasion hub” for Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia.
One of those critics is Andrea Stricker, who has served as a research fellow at the think tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies. In that role, she is considered an expert on nuclear proliferation.
She recently told the Free Beacon:
“Russian state-owned firms stand to gain billions of dollars under a reviewed Iran nuclear deal and would be exempted from U.S. sanctions. Washington should be working to close every one of the Kremlin’s revenue streams, not letting Moscow enrich itself while it is committing mass atrocities.”
Just a few days ago, top Iranian officials have said the nuclear deal negotiations are still alive but are lingering in the “emergency room.”
At issue is a decision the United States needs to make on lifting certain sanctions on oil exports from Iran and the country’s overall economy.
The country’s spokesman for the foreign ministry, Saeed Khatibzadeh, told reporters recently that Iran has finalized all details it would need to receive from the U.S. in order to revive the 2015 nuclear deal. He added that the U.S. hasn’t made a decision on his country’s latest proposal, though, which is causing the latest standoff.
As he told reporters:
“We haven’t reached the point yet where the U.S. side has shown the will to return to its own obligations under the nuclear deal and the related United Nations resolution.”
And maybe that’s a good thing, because no one should want to see Russian energy firms benefit from billions of dollars in new revenue.
