[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 179 (Tuesday, October 31, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5237-S5238]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                  Iran

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, Hamas's brutal attack on Israel on October 
7 has thrust not just Hamas but Iran into the spotlight. Why? Because, 
while Hamas may have carried out this attack, Iran enabled it and is 
currently enabling terrorist organizations throughout the Middle East.

[[Page S5238]]

  There is Hamas, which gets approximately 90 percent of its military 
budget from Iran and benefits from Iranian training and weapons. Then 
there is Hezbollah, the terrorist organization on Israel's northern 
border with Lebanon, which is also armed and financed by Iran. Then 
there are the Houthis in Yemen, who are backed by Iran and who, in the 
aftermath of October 7, fired missiles and drones headed in the 
direction of Israel, likely at Iran's direction. There are the Shia 
militias who are attacking American soldiers in Iraq and Syria, the 
Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the list literally goes on.
  As I said on the floor last week, through its proxies, Iran is 
literally getting away with murder. One has to wonder what the Middle 
East would look like today if Iran hadn't spent decades funding and 
arming terrorist organizations. Nor are Iran's malign activities 
confined to the Middle East. Iran has provided Russia with drones to 
use in its war of aggression against Ukraine, and now it appears that 
Iran is helping Russia to build a drone manufacturing facility to 
dramatically increase Russia's drone supply.
  Meanwhile, Russia's Foreign Minister was in Iran last week and met 
with the Iranian President. A Reuters article on the meeting reported:

       Russia and Iran are firming up bilateral relations in a 
     `trusting' atmosphere, Russia's foreign ministry said . . .

  Mr. President, Iran doesn't just represent a danger to peace and 
stability in the Middle East and beyond. It is directly responsible for 
much of the strife that we see there. And in the wake of the October 7 
attack and Israel's military response, Iran has threatened Israel with 
escalation and a war on ``multiple fronts.''
  It is time to make clear to Iran that its deadly activities can't 
continue. The Biden administration must clearly articulate to the 
Iranians that if they do not stand down or if they green-light any 
escalation against Israel, the United States and our allies will 
respond. In the meantime, the administration should be exploring all 
avenues for ending Iran's career as a state sponsor of terror. Israel 
and the Arab world deserve a chance to move forward, free of Iran's 
malign meddling.
  President Biden and his administration do not have the strongest 
track record on Iran--witness their misguided attempts to reboot the 
Obama administration's problematic nuclear deal and the decision to 
unfreeze $6 billion in Iranian funds as part of a deal to free American 
prisoners. The President did, finally, listen to calls from myself and 
others in the wake of Hamas's attack to once again freeze that $6 
billion, and the administration was right to move more U.S. forces into 
the region to deter escalation and to respond to attacks on U.S. 
troops.
  But it is clear that a lot more needs to be done if we want to stop 
Iran from funding terror. I am disappointed that the President has 
continued in his choice of Jack Lew as Ambassador to Israel. Mr. Lew 
played a key role in developing and carrying out the Obama 
administration's misguided nuclear deal, and his nomination does not 
exactly send the message to Iran that the Biden administration will be 
cracking down on Iranian warmongering.
  Thirty-three Americans died as a result of Hamas's October 7 act, and 
as many as 10 Americans are still likely trapped as hostages, with 
hundreds of other Americans still stuck in Gaza. Meanwhile, a number of 
American military personnel have been injured in drone attacks in Iraq 
and Syria carried out by Iran-backed groups. Add the more than 1,400 
individuals who died in Hamas's October 7 attack and countless other 
terrorism-related deaths in the Middle East and it becomes very clear 
that Iran's hands are stained with the blood of thousands.
  If there is to be any hope of peace in the Middle East, if there is 
to be any hope for a brighter and more secure future for Israelis and 
Palestinians and many others, then Iran's career as a state sponsor of 
terror must be ended. And I will do everything I can with my colleagues 
in Congress to see that that is accomplished. And I hope the Biden 
administration will do the same. It is time to end Iran's reign of 
terror.