Murphy: Sanctions relief makes it ‘harder to make a deal’ with Iran

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) on Monday said that sanctions relief for Iran agreed to in the country’s memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. makes it “harder to make a deal” with the Islamic regime.

Murphy told MS NOW’s Chris Hayes on “All In” that the Obama administration “didn’t release all these sanctions ahead” of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the previous deal designed to place limits on Iran’s uranium enrichment. President Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018.

“Iran has no reason to step forward and sign an agreement once they’ve already got the sanctions relief,” Murphy said, later adding that the MOU “makes it harder to get a deal. Is that coincidental? Maybe, but maybe not.”

The Connecticut Democrat argued that the lifted sanctions, unfrozen assets and reconstruction fund going to Iran as part of the MOU is a result of the U.S. having “lost the war, and so we have to pay an enormous amount of money to Iran to reopen” the Strait of Hormuz.

Murphy later noted that U.S. negotiators should consider “whether we get closer or further away from a deal by releasing all of the oil sanctions upfront.” He said that the U.S. “theoretically” has the leverage to sanction Iran again if after 60 days both parties cannot come up with a final deal, but “they know” that Iran will again close the strait, causing prices to soar.

“The reality is those sanctions have been lifted permanently,” Murphy said. “We have lost all that leverage we would have used to get a nuclear deal, and it is basically illogical that we’re going to get a deal that’s anything close to what the Obama deal was.”

The Treasury Department issued a 60-day licence on Monday that allows Iran to sell oil in U.S. dollars, which will allow dollar-denominated trade on crude oil, petrochemical and petroleum products through Aug. 21. The license also permits Iranian oil imports into the U.S. and allows formerly sanctioned vessels and entities to conduct transactions.

This waiver will allow Iranian banks to receive payments directly from buyers abroad, which could unlock billions of dollars in additional oil revenue for the country.

Trump earlier on Tuesday defended the MOU, writing on Truth Social that the funds and sanctions “goes into escrow, controlled by the U.S.A., and will be used for the purchase of food and medical supplies, exclusively from the United States, including Corn, Wheat, and Soybeans from our great American Farmers.”

“These are things that are desperately needed by Iran. This is a humanitarian crisis, and I feel it is necessary to help, NOW, before it is too late,” he wrote, saying in the same post that the ongoing negotiations led by his son-in-law Jared Kushner, Vice President Vance and special envoy Steve Witkoff “are going well!”

Murphy: Sanctions relief makes it ‘harder to make a deal’ with Iran

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