Majlis Panel Will Meet July 2 on New US Bans

EghtesadOnline: A parliamentary commission will convene early next month to discuss a draft bill in response to the sanctions legislation recently passed by the US Senate, a lawmaker said.

News ID: ۷۴۲۲۱۰

18 June 2017

"The measure was drafted by Majlis National Security and Foreign policy Commission in cooperation with the Majlis Research Center," Kamal Dehqani, a member of the commission, told IRNA on Saturday.

Dehqani added that "the commission will take up the bill in its first Sunday session after lawmakers return from their two-week recess" on July 2.

Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani has entrusted the commission with the task.

The Senate legislation, which passed on a vote of 98-2 on Thursday, has yet to get through the Republican-led House of Representatives and be signed by President Donald Trump to become law.

Trump's hawkish stance toward Iran and his frequent tirades against the 2015 Iran nuclear deal leave no doubt that he will approve the bill, if it ultimately clears the whole Congress.

It would impose new sanctions on Iran over its ballistic missile development, arms transfers, support for resistance groups and alleged human rights violations.

***Details of Measure

Reflecting on the details of the measure in an Instagram post on Saturday, nuclear negotiator Hamid Baeidinejad said the bill's provisions targeting the Islamic Republic Revolution Corps and its units responsible for foreign operations, the Qods Force, underscore that "the United States and its allies are frustrated with the failure of their regional policies."

The measure emphasizes that the entire IRGC, "not just the IRGC's Qods Force," is responsible for allegedly conducting destabilizing activities, supporting terrorism and developing Iran's disputed ballistic missile program, a language that would have the practical effect of designating the IRGC as a foreign terrorist group.

It adds to the sanctions the US has already imposed on the IRGC and individuals and entities linked to it.

Sanctions on the Qods Force were first put in place a decade ago under the pretext of terrorism support.

The bill directs the US president to impose financial sanctions and a travel ban on individuals and entities who "knowingly engage in any activity that materially contributes to the activities of the government of Iran with respect to its ballistic missile program."

It would also commit the US secretary of state to identify individuals responsible for certain human rights abuses within Iran and authorize, but not require, the US president to slap financial sanctions and a travel ban against those designated for human rights abuses.

Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior foreign policy advisor to the Leader of Islamic Revolution, said Friday Iran is preparing a proportionate response to the hostile congressional move.

"The JCPOA oversight committee will definitely review the issue to provide an appropriate response to the new US [congress'] sanctions [bill]," Velayat said, using an abbreviation that stands for the Joint comprehensive Plan of Action, the nuclear deal's formal title.

The new US sanctions have drawn the ire of Iranian officials, who see them as a clear breach of the historic accord.

The international agreement obliges the US and the other five powers to remove sanctions against Iran in return for scaling down its nuclear activities.

Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei cautioned the JCPOA committee earlier this week to be strict in its task of monitoring the other side's commitments.

The senate legislation also includes fresh sanctions on Russia.