Rep. Waxman's Statement on Final Passage of the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act
Washington,
Jun 24 -
STATEMENT OF REP. HENRY A. WAXMAN
H.R. 2194, the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability and Divestment Act
June 24, 2010
Madame Speaker. The world cannot tolerate a nuclear Iran.
With the punishing sanctions package before us today we take a major step to avoid that scenario by changing the calculus of Iran’s leaders and those whose dealings with Iran contribute to its reckless policies. Most importantly, we do not stand alone in our efforts. Because of the initiative and leadership of President Obama, these sanctions will be applied within a much broader framework of multilateral sanctions approved by the United Nations Security Council and complementary sanctions efforts in Europe and Russia.
Although the goal may be straightforward, the Iran strategy at hand is a complex array of diplomatic, financial and political pressures. The fact that we have arrived at a point where nations of the world are uniting to exact a price for Iran’s illegal nuclear activities and its defiance of the international community should not be taken for granted. It was not inevitable. Rather, it is the direct result of dogged and unflagging diplomacy by this Administration to convince our allies and partners why and how Iran must be stopped.
The results so far are promising. Already the European Union has initiated plans to implement and augment the U.N. sanctions and the UAE – one of Iran’s biggest trading partners – has announced its intent to strictly enforce the U.N. sanctions. In addition, Russia has said that it will not deliver advanced S-300 surface-air-missile systems to Tehran, a development that would have significantly elevated the risks for any military action against Iran.
Today, we have before us the most comprehensive set of sanctions of all.
Among its key features, H.R. 2194 will impose severe restrictions on financial institutions doing business with Iranian banks controlled by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Although U.S. banks have long been walled off from the Iranian banking system, banks in Europe and elsewhere in the world that continue business as usual with Iran will now be swiftly and entirely cut off from access to capital in the United States. It presents a stark choice that stands to have a significant chilling effect even before the sanctions are fully implemented.
The bill will also dramatically expand the depth and scope of sanctions targeting Iran’s petroleum sector by placing sanctions on any insurance, financing and shipping companies involved in exporting refined petroleum to Iran or developing its domestic refining capacity.
In addition, the bill will facilitate divestment from companies that do business in Iran by expressing support for state and local governments that choose to divest public assets and by ensuring that divestment efforts by private asset managers are not considered a breach of fiduciary duty.
Finally, this bill prioritizes human rights in Iran by hindering the sale of Internet filtration and censorship technology to Iran and blocking companies engaging in such traffic from access to U.S. government procurement contracts. While I regret that the Iranian people, already victims of tyranny, could face economic repercussions as the result of these sanctions, I firmly believe that weakening the IRGC is essential to overcome the regime’s oppression.
I recognize that the window of opportunity could be limited. Iran now has partially enriched enough uranium to develop two nuclear warheads and its pursuit of nuclear weapons technology continues in earnest. But I urge my colleagues to vote yes and take serious action to pressure Iran to change course. And, once this bill is enacted, let us continue working with the President to make sure that these efforts proceed.
It is possible for a strong and coordinated sanctions regime to convince Iran to take the clear path that has been offered to end its status as a pariah state. At the very least, it is our best hope to bring about a successful diplomatic resolution of this crisis and avert the need for military action.
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Representative Henry A. Waxman 30th District of California
