Approval of Ban on Sale of Boeing Aircraft to Iran in the U.S. House of Representatives

The U.S. House of Representatives, where Republicans hold the majority, approved two new amendments on Thursday aimed at preventing the sale of Boeing passenger planes to Iran. According to the Associated Press, members of the House voted to attach two amendments to the financial services budget bill that could block the sale of Boeing passenger aircraft to Iran. The voting for these two amendments was conducted orally. Following the nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers, Barack Obama, the U.S. President, issued a license for the export of passenger planes to Iran. In this context, the American aircraft manufacturer Boeing announced earlier this month a historic deal with Iran under the nuclear agreement. If this deal goes through, it will be the largest commercial contract between Iran and the U.S. since the 1979 revolution. Meanwhile, Peter Roskam, a Republican representative from Illinois and the sponsor of these amendments, stated that if these passenger planes are sold, they will likely be used by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. According to the Associated Press, this Republican representative emphasized that giving such aircraft to the Iranian government, which is still the world's largest state sponsor of terrorism, is akin to suggesting that these products will be used for military purposes. He added that by repurposing Boeing passenger planes, 100 ballistic missiles and 15,000 missile launchers could be transported with them. On the other hand, José Serrano, a Democratic representative from New York, opposed the proposal, stating that Republican opposition to the Iran-Boeing agreement is part of the party's strategy to undermine this agreement. Since the nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers last year, Republicans, who hold the majority in both the House and Senate, have sought to pass various measures against this agreement, but so far these efforts have not yielded results. Barack Obama had previously threatened to veto any measure that would weaken the nuclear agreement between Iran and the six world powers. Reports indicate that the Iran-Boeing contract will be worth $25 billion. In this context, Boeing had previously stated that the implementation of all or part of the contract with Iran is contingent upon the approval of the U.S. government.