New Sanctions Against Iran Approved by the U.S. Senate

On Thursday, June 15, the U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of a new sanctions bill against the Islamic Republic of Iran, known as the "Countering Iran's Destabilizing Activities Act." This bill imposes mandatory sanctions on any individual or entity associated with Iran's ballistic missile program and also on commercial partners of this program. These sanctions are deemed necessary due to Iran's development of ballistic missiles, support for terrorism and militia groups, and human rights violations within the country, with the Senate representatives approving it with 98 votes in favor and only 2 against. Following Senate approval, this bill will now be presented to the House of Representatives for a vote. If passed, it will become law with the signature of President Donald Trump. The Iran sanctions bill was approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on May 24, and last week, Senate members voted to end negotiations on the matter. Previously, Rex Tillerson, the U.S. Secretary of State, welcomed the Senate's sanctions proposal against Iran. The Secretary of State, who appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to explain the proposed government budget, emphasized the need to counter Iran's ambitions in the region. On Tuesday, it was announced that Senate representatives had reached an agreement to pass the Iran sanctions bill, which is set to be voted on in the Senate chamber this week. Concurrently, on June 21, the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly approved an amendment to the Iran sanctions bill that will impose new sanctions against Russia. This legislation requires the President of the United States to seek congressional approval to reduce sanctions against Russia. According to Reuters, 97 senators voted in favor of the Russia sanctions amendment, with only two senators opposing it. The goal of these sanctions is to punish Russia for its interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, the annexation of Crimea, and support for the Syrian government. Senator Chuck Schumer stated that the Democratic Party wants the Russia sanctions to proceed alongside the Iran sanctions. In the Senate vote on Thursday, which included all 100 members, only two senators, independent Bernie Sanders and Republican Rand Paul, opposed the sanctions. Hours after the Senate approved this bill, Bernie Sanders issued a statement expressing deep concerns about Iran's policies and activities, especially its support for the brutal Assad regime in Syria. He noted that he had previously voted for sanctions against Iran and believed they were an important tool for bringing Iran to the negotiating table. Sanders emphasized that these new sanctions could jeopardize the crucial 2015 nuclear agreement between the U.S. and its allies with Iran, stating, "This is a danger that is not worth experiencing, especially at a time when tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia and its allies are escalating." In another part of his statement, Sanders argued that the United States should play a more balanced role in the Middle East and find ways to address not only Iran's activities but also decades of Saudi support for radical extremism. Iran has previously described unilateral U.S. sanctions against its missile program as a violation of the nuclear agreement with six world powers, known as the JCPOA. However, Democratic Senator Robert Menendez and Republican Senator Bob Corker, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the sponsors of the new sanctions bill against Iran, have stated that these sanctions do not violate the nuclear agreement with Iran. Nevertheless, John Kerry, the U.S. Secretary of State during Barack Obama's presidency, who led the nuclear talks with Iran, had warned about imposing sanctions that could undermine the nuclear agreement. Kerry noted that there had been many ups and downs in reaching the "Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action" and welcomed discussions on this matter. He referred to Hassan Rouhani's reelection as president and stated, "Now is not the right time to propose new sanctions against Iran." On Monday, June 12, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's foreign minister, who was in Norway to participate in the Oslo Forum, stated that the Trump administration would ultimately adhere to the Vienna nuclear agreement. However, he added, "Unfortunately, the new administration's behavior in Washington is not very promising." Zarif described the U.S. Senate's move to draft new sanctions against Iran as "short-sighted" and indicative of a "wrong policy" that the U.S. government has pursued, particularly after the recent elections. The day before, Abbas Araghchi, head of the team monitoring the implementation of the JCPOA, announced that the Joint Commission of the JCPOA would likely convene in July and stated that if the new U.S. sanctions were implemented, Iran would view them as a violation of the JCPOA. The Joint Commission of the JCPOA includes representatives from the P5+1 group and Iran, overseeing the implementation of the Vienna nuclear agreement. During his visit to Norway, Zarif also emphasized to Federica Mogherini, the European Union's foreign policy chief, that Iran would never unilaterally violate the JCPOA. The report from the state news agency IRNA on this meeting indicated that Mogherini also stressed the "commitment and responsibility of the European Union to implement the JCPOA." "Iran's Countermeasure Against the U.S. Senate's Resolution" Ali Larijani requested the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of the Parliament to quickly present a "countermeasure against the U.S. Senate's resolution" regarding the new sanctions package against the Islamic Republic. According to the state news agency IRNA, Larijani, the Speaker of Parliament, stated on Sunday, June 11, that this body would show a "serious reaction" to the U.S. Senate's resolution and would provide a "clear response" to this resolution. He asked the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee to prepare and present a "countermeasure" to this resolution as soon as possible.