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Biden mulls removing Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard from terror list

White House demands in return “public commitment from Iran to de-escalation in the region.”

By David Hellerman, World Israel News

The U.S. is considering removing Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) from the State Department’s list of terror organizations, Axios reported on Wednesday.

According to the report, the Biden Administration is demanding in return “a public commitment from Iran to de-escalation in the region.”

Iran continues to demand the removal of the IRGC’s designation.

The report said that the IRGC’s terror designation is “not directly related” to the nuclear agreement being finalized by international negotiators in Vienna but “would take the form of a separate bilateral understanding between the U.S. and Iran.”

The report also said that former Vice President Mike Pence told Israeli officials during a visit last week that the Biden administration was considering de-listing the IRGC “in return for a more narrow commitment not to target Americans.” U.S. officials told Israel that this idea had been rejected.

The IRGC is a powerful military organization tasked with protecting Iran’s political system. It has its own army, navy, air force and intelligence branches and oversees Iran’s strategic weapons.

The IRGC’s Quds Force oversees Iran’s relationships with terror proxies such as Hamas, Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis and Iraqi Shi’ite militias, providing money, weapons and training.

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Axios also reported that Secretary of State Antony Blinken is planning a possible trip to the Middle East later in March. The itinerary would include talks in Jerusalem, Ramallah, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Sources stressed that the Blinken trip could be postponed or cancelled depending on developments in Ukraine.