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Iran Sanctions Figure Large in AIPAC Lobbying

[JTA ] Ron Kampeas - As 5,000 AIPAC activists ascend Capitol Hill this week, they will be pushing a multifaceted agenda with a clear bottom line - Iran sanctions. The most dramatic proposal is to cut off refined petroleum exports to Iran, hitting 40% of that country's gas market. AIPAC has led the way since the mid-1990s in advocating for sanctions aimed at crippling the Iranian economy until the Islamic Republic ends its suspected nuclear weapons program. In recent years, the notion of sanctioning Iran has gained traction, with the UN Security Council imposing three sets of sanctions in the past 18 months. The activists are pressing for Senate passage of the Iran Counter Proliferation Act, a bill passed overwhelmingly in the House of Representatives last year. It would expand existing sanctions by hitting companies and nations that deal with Iran's energy sector. It also would cut off Iran entirely from the U.S. finance system. A nonbinding resolution put forward last week by U.S. Reps. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) and Mike Pence (R-Ind.) urges President Bush to immediately impose some of the sanctions in the Counter Proliferation Act and adds the new proposal: cut off the export of refined petroleum to Iran. "Despite sitting on some of the largest oil reserves in the world, Iran has been forced to import 40% of its refined petroleum - gasoline and diesel - because of a lack of investment in its oil refining infrastructure," states a memo prepared for AIPAC activists. "Limiting Iran's ability to import gasoline will severely impact Iran's economy and could lead to dramatically greater domestic pressure on the regime to change course."
2008-06-06 01:00:00
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