Iran’s Illicit Oil Sales Help Fuel Mass Military Buildup

The Biden administration’s lax enforcement of sanctions on Iran’s illicit oil trade has allowed the hardline regime to infuse more than $15 billion into its military and terrorist proxies during the past two years, according to analysis by a watchdog group. Iranian military spending significantly jumped in 2022 as the regime got more access to cash through its multibillion-dollar trade in illicit oil—cash that made its way to the regime as a result of the Biden administration’s decision not to enforce U.S. sanctions, according to United Against a Nuclear Iran (UANI), a watchdog group that tracks the regime’s oil sales and military spending.