Russia Mocks Blinken For 'Awkward' Comment On Raisi, GOP Slams Him For Condoling 'Butcher Of Tehran'

The Kremlin expressed disbelief at comments by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken following Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s death. The top US diplomat on May 20 claimed the Iranian people are “better off” without Raisi, who was killed in a helicopter crash near Azerbaijan. Such a remark would be “insulting to the entire people” of Iran, the Kremlin spokesperson added. The Biden administration’s Iran policy came under intense scrutiny on May 21, as Republican senators grilled Blinken over a message of condolences after Raisi’s death. Republican lawmakers accused the Biden administration of going soft on the Iranian hardliner, who was elected president in 2021.