Lawmakers Press for Iran Envoy To Be Axed, Nuclear Negotiations Halted

The Biden administration is facing congressional pressure to fire U.S. special envoy for Iran Robert Malley and suspend nuclear negotiations with the hardline regime in the wake of a growing protest movement that threatens to topple the Islamic Republic.

Rep. Pat Fallon (R., Texas), a member of the House Armed Services Committee, issued these demands in a letter sent Tuesday to the White House and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.

“The leadership in Iran,” Fallon wrote, “is beyond reform and deserves nothing from the civilized world. The United States must lead through action, not empty rhetoric.” President Joe Biden must “remove Rob Malley as U.S. special envoy for Iran and permanently halt negotiations on a revival of the [Iran nuclear deal] or a lesser than agreement.”

Fallon is one of the first lawmakers to call for Malley’s resignation in the wake of a protest movement that has swept across Iran and led to a deadly crackdown by the country’s theocratic government. The Biden administration has faced criticism from Iranian dissident groups for its muted response to what could be a burgeoning revolution in Iran after more than 40 years of oppressive rule. While the administration has condemned the Iranian government’s human rights crimes and issued some new economic sanctions, it has stopped short of expressing support for the protesters’ calls to oust Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Malley is seen as the administration’s most prominent supporter of the Iranian government, given his ongoing attempts to revive the 2015 nuclear accord and solidify the regime’s grip on power.

“Enough is enough,” Fallon wrote in his letter to Biden. The United States must immediately get serious about helping Iranian protesters realize their goals of removing the regime from power, he said.

In addition to firing Malley, the Biden administration must rally U.S. allies to isolate the Iranian government by cutting off trade and all diplomatic relations, Fallon said.

The United States should also initiate efforts at the United Nations to reimpose all international sanctions that were lifted as part of the original 2015 nuclear deal, Fallon wrote. This option, known as “snapback,” is a disputed resolution mechanism written into the original agreement that allows any U.N. member nation to trigger the reimposition of sanctions if Iran is found to be in violation of the deal. The Biden administration has refrained from exercising this right to avoid upsetting the Iranian government amid its