by Majid Rafizadeh, GATESTONE INSTITUTE • July 22, 2020 at 5:00 am
- For almost four decades, Iran’s regime has been squandering the nation’s resources on terror and militia groups… It is estimated that the regime has spent more than $100 billion on its nuclear program.
- Many employees of the government, including coal workers and railroad workers, have been protesting unpaid wages and salaries. One protester told Iran News Wire, “I wish I would get COVID-19. Many of us do. Committing suicide is hard but we wish for death every day. What we have is not a life.”
- Some of Iran’s authorities have publicly announced that they also do not have money to pay their mercenaries abroad.
- Iran’s mullahs have no one to blame but themselves for the country’s drastic economic situation. They simply need to start prioritizing their own people over sponsoring and funding terror and militia groups across the region.
The Iranian regime is facing an unprecedented level of pressure, which, if it continues, can threaten the ruling mullahs’ hold on power. Iran’s currency, the rial, which has been in free fall in the last few weeks, has plunged to a record low. Pictured: Traders from Tehran’s Grand Bazaar gather on June 25, 2018 to protest the collapse of rial’s value, shortly after the Trump administration started its “maximum pressure” policy against Tehran. (Photo by Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images)<
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The Iranian regime is facing an unprecedented level of pressure, which, if it continues, can threaten the ruling mullahs’ hold on power. Iran’s currency, the rial, which has been in free fall in the last few weeks, has plunged to a record low. As of July 18, 2020, a US dollar is now worth approximately 250,000 rials. Before the current US administration imposed a “maximum pressure” policy against Tehran, a US dollar had equaled nearly 30,000 rials.
People, as they see the value of their money depreciating by almost ten-fold, have been rushing to get foreign currency. Last month, Iran’s oil exports also sank to a record low. Three years ago, Iran was exporting roughly 2.5 million barrels of oil a day. According to the latest reports, Iran’s oil export is now around 70,000 barrels a day — a reduction of nearly 97%. The country’s budget heavily relies on selling oil.
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I initially thought China was bailing the Iranians out . The amount for each year is so low that it will not save them. Thankfully. I hope the pressure continues until it falls apart and the craziness of the last 41 years comes to an end.
This article shows why Iran is desperate to do a deal with China to bail them out of the economic quicksand.