Republican Senators, led by Senator Kelly Ann Ayotte of New Hampshire, had introduced to the Congress a bill that would impose tougher sanctions against Iran's ballistic missiles program.
A Revolutionary Guard from Iran had test-fired two guided missiles last March 9, 2016 - a clear defiance of the U.N. resolution that specifically disallowed Iran to launch any missiles capable of delivering a nuclear weapon.
Senator Ayotte said "Condemnations of Iran's blatant disregard for its international obligations are not enough," in a report from The Iran Primer.
If the bill, titled "Iran Ballistic Missile Sanctions Act of 2016," is passed, the Obama administration will be forced to sanction every sector of Iran's economy that shows support to the ballistic missile program. The Associated Press reported that Ayotte's bill is a result of the Congress' aggravated efforts to convince GOP lawmakers and President Barack Obama to properly punish Tehran, Iran for repeatedly violating a U.N. ballistic missile test ban.
The bill is also supported by Senior U.S. military officials. Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Army Gen. Joseph Votel, who is Obama's pick to be the next U.S. commander for the Middle East, have told the Senate Armed Services Committee, that harder hitting sanctions are necessary, as stated in AP's report.
Kelly Ayotte's bill in brief:
(1) imposes new sanctions against persons that knowingly aid Iran's ballistic missile program;
(2) requires new sanctions against entities owned 25 percent or greater or controlled by Iran's key ballistic missile organizations (the Aerospace Industries Organization, the Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group, or the Shahid Bakeri Industrial Group);
(3) requires a Presidential certification that persons listed in UN Security Council Resolutions are not engaged in activities related to ballistic missiles and requires the imposition of sanctions if that certification cannot be made; and
(4) imposes sanctions on persons involved in sectors of Iran's economy that support, directly or indirectly, Iran's ballistic program.
Since 2015, U.S. lawmakers have already previously introduced more than a dozen legislations against Iran. The Iran Primer reported that one of the legislations is, "The Iran Terror Finance Transparency Act," by Republican Steve Russell, which prohibits removing sanctions on certain entities until the president confirms that they have no link to ballistic missiles or terrorism.
Another is the "Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps Sanctions Implementation and Review Act" by Diplomat Brad Sherman, which would prohibit transactions with foreigners who knowingly engage in deals with the Revolutionary Guards or other sanctioned entities if the property involved is linked to the United States.
