The United States supports Gulf countries contributing hundreds of billions of dollars to Iran, but will not contribute itself, according to Vice President JD Vance.
The subject of funds either given to or made available for Iran has been a primary source of questions as the Trump administration prepares to sign its Memorandum of Understanding with Tehran on Friday.
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“That’s the sort of thing they could have access to, funded by the Gulf Coast Coalition, so long as they honor their end of the obligation,” Vance told CBS News on Monday, when asked whether the U.S.-Iran memorandum electronically signed Sunday allowed for a “$300 billion reconstruction fund.”
He emphasized that the U.S. would not contribute to this effort, which would be used for reconstruction, and that Iran would have to meet certain criteria to get the funds.
“We absolutely are open to the Gulf Coast countries investing in the reconstruction of Iran, but only if Iran ends their nuclear program, ends their enriched stockpile of material, and is really open to an inspections and enforcement regime that gives the American people confidence they’re never going to have a nuclear weapon,” Vance said.
In a subsequent interview with Fox News’s Sean Hannity, he said, “Iranians don’t get a dime unless they behave and change their behavior,” and will “never get a dime of American taxpayer money. Ever. Full stop. Not even close.”
It’s unclear what specific benchmarks the Iranians must meet to unlock the funds because the text of the agreement has still not been released.
A senior administration official told reporters on Monday that the “big $300 billion fund to rebuild their country, and all of these things are going to be tied to performance,” and that it “only happens if they make themselves investable.”
David Schenker, a former State Department and Pentagon official now with the Washington Institute, told the Washington Examiner that the deal could result in Iran winding up with “potentially with pallets of cash, reminiscent, if not potentially greater than the amount that President Obama provided to the Iranians to agree to the [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action] JCPOA.”
While the Iranians have shown openness to the MOU, it’s unclear how open they will be during the negotiations that take place on the more difficult subjects, such as their nuclear program.
“Who cares where the money comes from? If it doesn’t come from the United States, I get that. Of course it shouldn’t,” retired Gen. Jack Keane said on Hannity Monday night. “But it shouldn’t come from anybody. I mean, when we recovered Germany and Japan, the Nazis weren’t in charge, the Japanese imperialists weren’t in charge. Here, the Iranians are in charge. The killers and thugs are still in charge. We don’t give them that money because what are they going to do with it? They’re going to recover everything we have taken away from them.”
Vance is expected to lead the U.S. delegation heading to Geneva, Switzerland, for a signing ceremony set for Friday, though he, President Donald Trump, and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf have already “virtually” signed it.
