Nikki Haley Says She 'Will be Voting for Trump'

Former US President Donald Trump talking with former Former US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki  Haley during a Security Council session in September 2018 (AFP)
Former US President Donald Trump talking with former Former US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley during a Security Council session in September 2018 (AFP)
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Nikki Haley Says She 'Will be Voting for Trump'

Former US President Donald Trump talking with former Former US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki  Haley during a Security Council session in September 2018 (AFP)
Former US President Donald Trump talking with former Former US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley during a Security Council session in September 2018 (AFP)

Former GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley said will vote for former President Donald Trump in November -- despite her disappointment with him.

During a question-and-answer session after delivering a speech at the Hudson Institute in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Haley was asked who she thinks would do a better job in the White House with national security issues: Joe Biden or Donald Trump.

The former United Nations ambassador said she prioritizes a president who will hold enemies to account, secure the border and support "capitalism and freedom" -- and that while "Trump has not been perfect on these policies," that "Biden has been a catastrophe."

"So, I will be voting for Trump," Haley said, AFP reported.

During a speech announcing her campaign suspension -- the day after suffering considerable losses on Super Tuesday, the former South Carolina governor said Trump had to "earn the votes."

"It is now up to Donald Trump to earn the votes of those in our party and beyond it, who did not support him," she said in March. "And I hope he does that. At its best politics is about bringing people into your cause, not turning them away. And our conservative cause badly needs more people."

Many of the Republicans who once challenged Trump for the nomination quickly fell into line behind him after exiting the race.

The Biden campaign has tried to court Haley voters, some of whom have told ABC News they remain undecided.

On Wednesday, following Hayley's announcement, a representative of the Biden campaign released a statement touting their candidate.

"Nothing has changed for the millions of Republican voters who continue to cast their ballots against Donald Trump in the primaries and care deeply about the future of our democracy, standing strong with our allies against foreign adversaries, and working across the aisle to get things done for the American people – while also rejecting the chaos, division and violence that Donald Trump embodies," the statement read. "Only one candidate shares those values, and only one campaign is working hard every day to earn their support – and that’s President Biden's."

Despite leaving the race, Haley picked up primary support in states including Maryland, Indiana and Wisconsin.



US Slaps Sanctions on Network It Accuses of Moving Billions for Iran’s Military

The Treasury Department is pictured in Washington, US, April 25, 2021. (Reuters)
The Treasury Department is pictured in Washington, US, April 25, 2021. (Reuters)
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US Slaps Sanctions on Network It Accuses of Moving Billions for Iran’s Military

The Treasury Department is pictured in Washington, US, April 25, 2021. (Reuters)
The Treasury Department is pictured in Washington, US, April 25, 2021. (Reuters)

The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on nearly 50 entities and people it accused of moving billions of dollars for Iran's military.

The US Treasury Department in a statement said those targeted on Tuesday constitute a "shadow banking network" used by Iran's Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL) and Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), both of which are under US sanctions.

The network helped the MODAFL and IRGC - which earn money notably from the sale of oil and petrochemicals - gain access to the international financial system and process the equivalent of billions of dollars since 2020, the Treasury said.

The Treasury said the revenue generated by the MODAFL and IRGC through networks of Iranian exchange houses and foreign cover companies supported the provision of weapons and funding to Iran's proxy groups, including Yemen's Houthi militias, and the transfer of drones to Russia for use in the war against Ukraine.

Washington has issued rafts of sanctions targeting Iranian drones and the Houthis, who have been launching drone and missile strikes in shipping lanes since November in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians in Israel's war in Gaza.

"We continue to work with allies and partners, as well as the global financial industry, to increase vigilance against the movement of funds supporting terrorism," Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said in the statement.

Iran's mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately comment on the action.

Tuesday's action targeted dozens of companies in Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and Marshall Islands, as well as Iran and Türkiye-based firms.

The Treasury said the MODAFL Supply Division uses exchange houses in Iran that manage numerous cover companies registered in jurisdictions such as Hong Kong or the UAE to launder revenue, including from oil sales conducted by Sahara Thunder, which the US imposed sanctions on in April.

The Treasury at the time accused Sahara Thunder of being a front company that oversees MODAFL's commercial activities in support of the IRGC and Russia's war in Ukraine, playing a key role in Iran's design, development, manufacture and sale of thousands of drones.

The move freezes the US assets of banned companies and individuals, and generally bars Americans from dealing with them. Those that engage in certain transactions with them also risk being hit with sanctions.