Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei attends the joint graduation ceremony of armed forces cadets at Imam Hussein Military University in Tehran, Iran, on October 3, 2022. (Iranian Leader Press Office/Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

The death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of Iran’s so-called morality police has sparked protests across the country, posing the most serious challenge to Tehran’s theocratic dictatorship in years. Meanwhile, the policy debate in the United States is rightly focused on constraining Iran’s nuclear program and state sponsorship of terrorism. But the theocratic regime is also a deeply entrenched kleptocracy against which the US should apply more pressure. In a recent Hudson policy memo, Research Fellow Nate Sibley examines Iranian corruption, the implications for US policy, and how the US can target the regime’s kleptocracy.

Key Insights

1. Do Not Offer Sanctions Relief

Pursuing a return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) may necessitate concessions that empower Iran’s kleptocracy. If granted, sanctions relief would likely involve the release of billions of dollars to Tehran. In addition to providing resources for the nuclear program and state sponsorship of terrorism, these funds could help Tehran intensify internal repression and further entrench the regime’s patronage networks.

2. Intensify Efforts to Locate and Freeze Regime Assets

The United States already devotes significant resources to developing and enforcing sanctions on Iran. These should increasingly target not only influential members of the regime but also their family members and other close associates. This is because kleptocrats rarely register assets in their own name and because senior regime officials' children who benefit from the kleptocracy of a brutal regime do not deserve luxury shopping holidays in Europe.

3. Strengthen US Financial Transparency

The Biden administration should accelerate the implementation of its US Strategy on Countering Corruption. In particular, Washington needs to roll out the US corporate beneficial ownership register, which will help tackle shell company abuse, and extend anti-money laundering responsibilities beyond traditional banks to include other sectors. These basic transparency measures will make it harder for Iranian kleptocrats to use the US financial system for money laundering and sanctions evasion.

Quotes may be edited for clarity and length. 

Go Deeper