US State Dept Program Offers $15 Million for Info on Iran Revolutionary Guards

Hook says Trump still supports bilateral diplomacy

The US State Department has unveiled a new $15 million “reward program” for anyone who provides information on the financial inner workings of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, in an attempt to further disrupt them.

The program comes after the US declared the Revolutionary Guards “terrorists,” but remains very unusual, in as much as it targets an agency of a national government instead of just some random militant group.

Some analysts say they expect a backlash against the program, as further harming European and other international diplomatic efforts with Iran. US Special Envoy Brian Hook insisted, however, that the US wasn’t trying to harm diplomacy.

Instead, Hook said this made no change to US policy, and President Trump supports bilateral diplomacy with Iran irrespective of this latest effort. Iran is already downplaying the chances of such talks, saying they have made it clear to the US they want sanctions relief as a condition.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.