U.S. House of Representatives Votes on Amendments to Ban Sale of Commercial Aircraft to Iran

The U.S. House of Representatives has voted on amendments that, if finalized in the Senate and signed by the President, would prevent the sale of commercial aircraft to Iran. Democratic representatives have warned that the final approval of the bill could undermine international efforts related to the nuclear agreement. The amendments were proposed by Republican Representative Peter Roskam and were introduced on September 13 during the review of the upcoming U.S. defense bill. According to the Hill website, the amendments prevent the use of financial resources for issuing licenses related to monetary transfers and also block the issuance of licenses for aircraft sales by the U.S. Department of State's Office of Foreign Assets Control. Roskam pointed to the Islamic Republic's history of using commercial aircraft to transport weapons and personnel in support of Bashar al-Assad, calling for a halt to aircraft sales. Roskam stated, "As long as Iran continues to use commercial aircraft to support terrorists and war criminals, Western companies should not be allowed to sell them to Iranian airlines; aircraft that aid the violent war initiated by [Bashar] Assad." Iran has denied supporting terrorism. Tehran and Moscow, the main supporters of Bashar al-Assad, claim they are present in Syria at the request of the central government to counter what they call "terrorist groups." Iran and Russia also consider Assad's opponents to be the cause of the Syrian civil war. The Syrian war began seven years ago with a severe crackdown on largely peaceful protests against the Syrian government and has since left between 370,000 and half a million dead and over ten million displaced. Democrats in the House of Representatives have raised concerns about the proposed amendments. The Hill website quoted Earl Blumenauer, a Democratic representative, stating that this bill "targets American companies for penalties without any reasonable justification" and undermines the nuclear agreement between Iran, the U.S., and five global powers. Blumenauer said, "In my opinion, adhering to our commitments regarding the nuclear agreement is important. The nuclear agreement with Iran is one of the few bright spots in (regional) events." The vote on Roskam's amendments was conducted orally (unanimously). This Republican representative had also introduced amendments to the financial services budget bill last year aimed at preventing aircraft sales to Iran. Following the nuclear agreement and the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, then-President Barack Obama authorized his Secretary of State to issue licenses for the export of passenger aircraft to Iran. In July 2016, the U.S. State Department welcomed Boeing's announcement regarding an agreement with Iran Air, stating that the agreement would be carried out within the framework specified by the "JCPOA." The current bill must be voted on by the Senate and then signed by the U.S. President to be implemented. The Hill website also noted that a similar bill passed last year did not reach a Senate review.