[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 277 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 277

        To impose comprehensive economic sanctions against Iran.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

             January 25 (legislative day, January 10), 1995

  Mr. D'Amato introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
    referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
        To impose comprehensive economic sanctions against Iran.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Comprehensive Iran Sanctions Act of 
1995''.

SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS.

    (a) Iran's Violations of Human Rights.--The Congress makes the 
following findings with respect to Iran's violations of human rights:
            (1) As cited by the 1991 United Nations Special 
        Representative on Human Rights, Amnesty International, and the 
        United States Department of State, the Government of Iran has 
        conducted assassinations outside of Iran, such as that of 
        former Prime Minister Shahpour Bakhtiar for which the 
        Government of France issued arrest warrants for several Iranian 
        governmental officials.
            (2) As cited by the 1991 United Nations Special 
        Representative on Human Rights and by Amnesty International, 
        the Government of Iran has conducted revolutionary trials which 
        do not meet internationally recognized standards of fairness or 
        justice. These trials have included such violations as a lack 
        of procedural safeguards, trial times of 5 minutes or less, 
        limited access to defense counsel, forced confessions, and 
        summary executions.
            (3) As cited by the 1991 United Nations Special 
        Representative on Human Rights, the Government of Iran 
        systematically represses its Baha'i population. Persecutions of 
        this small religious community include assassinations, 
        arbitrary arrests, electoral prohibitions, and denial of 
        applications for documents such as passports.
            (4) As cited by the 1991 United Nations Special 
        Representative on Human Rights, the Government of Iran 
        suppresses opposition to its government. Political 
        organizations such as the Freedom Movement are banned from 
        parliamentary elections, have their telephones tapped and their 
        mail opened, and are systematically harassed and intimidated.
            (5) As cited by the 1991 United Nations Special 
        Representative on Human Rights and Amnesty International, the 
        Government of Iran has failed to recognize the importance of 
        international human rights. This includes suppression of 
        Iranian human rights movements such as the Freedom Movement, 
        lack of cooperation with international human rights 
        organizations such as the International Red Cross, and an 
        overall apathy toward human rights in general. This lack of 
        concern prompted the Special Representative to state in his 
        report that Iran had made ``no appreciable progress towards 
        improved compliance with human rights in accordance with the 
        current international instruments''.
            (6) As cited by Amnesty International, the Government of 
        Iran continues to torture its political prisoners. Torture 
        methods include burns, arbitrary blows, severe beatings, and 
        positions inducing pain.
    (b) Iran's Acts of International Terrorism.--The Congress makes the 
following findings, based on the records of the Department of State, 
with respect to Iran's acts of international terrorism:
            (1) As cited by the Department of State, the Government of 
        Iran was the greatest supporter of state terrorism in 1992, 
        supporting over 20 terrorist acts, including the bombing of the 
        Israeli Embassy in Buenos Aires that killed 29 people.
            (2) As cited by the Department of State, the Government of 
        Iran is a sponsor of radical religious groups that have used 
        terrorism as a tool. These include such groups as Hezballah, 
        HAMAS, the Turkish Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Front for the 
        Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC).
            (3) As cited by the Department of State, the Government of 
        Iran has resorted to international terrorism as a means of 
        obtaining political gain. These actions have included not only 
        the assassination of former Prime Minister Bakhitiar, but the 
        death sentence imposed on Salman Rushdie, and the assassination 
        of the leader of the Kurdish Democratic Party of Iran.
            (4) As cited by the Department of State and the Vice 
        President's Task Force on Combatting Terrorism, the Government 
        of Iran has long been a proponent of terrorist actions against 
        the United States, beginning with the takeover of the United 
        States Embassy in Tehran in 1979. Iranian support of extremist 
        groups have led to the following attacks upon the United States 
        as well:
                    (A) The car bomb attack on the United States 
                Embassy in Beirut killing 49 in 1983 by the Hezballah.
                    (B) The car bomb attack on the United States Marine 
                Barracks in Beirut killing 241 in 1983 by the 
                Hezballah.
                    (C) The assassination of American University 
                President in 1984 by the Hezballah.
                    (D) The kidnapping of all American hostages in 
                Lebanon from 1984-1986 by the Hezballah.

SEC. 3. TRADE EMBARGO.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (c), effective on 
the date of enactment of this Act, a total trade embargo shall be in 
force between the United States and Iran.
    (b) Covered Transactions.--As part of such embargo the following 
transactions are prohibited:
            (1) Any transaction in the currency exchange of Iran.
            (2) The transfer of credit or payments between, by, 
        through, or to any banking institution, to the extent that such 
        transfers or payments involve any interest of Iran or a 
        national thereof.
            (3) The importing from, or exporting to, Iran of currency 
        or securities.
            (4) Any acquisition, holding, withholding, use, transfer, 
        withdrawal, transportation, importation or exportation of, or 
        dealing in, or exercising any right, power, or privilege with 
        respect to, or any transaction involving, any property in which 
        Iran or any national thereof has any interest; by any person, 
        or with respect to any property, subject to the jurisdiction of 
        the United States.
            (5) The licensing for export to Iran, or for export to any 
        other country for reexport to Iran, by any person subject to 
        the jurisdiction of the United States of any item or technology 
        controlled under the Export Administration Act of 1979, the 
        Arms Export Control Act, or the Atomic Energy Act of 1954.
            (6) The importation into the United States of any good or 
        service which is, in whole or in part, grown, produced, 
        manufactured, extracted, or processed in Iran.
    (c) Extraterritorial Application.--In addition to the transactions 
described in subsection (b), the trade embargo imposed by this Act 
prohibits any transaction described in paragraphs (1) through (4) of 
that subsection when engaged in by a United States national abroad.
    (d) Exceptions.--This section shall not apply to any transaction 
involving the furnishing, for humanitarian purposes, of food, clothing, 
medicine, or medical supplies, instruments, or equipment to Iran or to 
any national thereof.
    (e) Penalties.--Any person who violates this section or any 
license, order, or regulation issued under this section shall be 
subject to the same penalties as are applicable under section 206 of 
the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to 
violations of licenses, orders, or regulations under that Act.
    (f) Application to Existing Law.--This section shall apply 
notwithstanding any other provision of law or international agreement.

SEC. 4. OPPOSITION TO MULTILATERAL ASSISTANCE.

    (a) International Financial Institutions.--(1) The Secretary of the 
Treasury shall instruct the United States executive director of each 
international financial institution described in paragraph (2) to 
oppose and vote against any extension of credit or other financial 
assistance by that institution to Iran.
    (2) The international financial institutions referred to in 
paragraph (1) are the International Bank for Reconstruction and 
Development, the International Development Association, the Asian 
Development Bank, and the International Monetary Fund.
    (b) United Nations.--It is the sense of the Congress that the 
United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations should 
oppose and vote against the provision of any assistance by the United 
Nations or any of its specialized agencies to Iran.

SEC. 5. WAIVER AUTHORITY.

    The provisions of sections 3 and 4 shall not apply if the President 
determines and certifies to the appropriate congressional committees 
that Iran--
            (1) has substantially improved its adherence to 
        internationally recognized standards of human rights;
            (2) has ceased its efforts to acquire a nuclear explosive 
        device; and
            (3) has ceased support for acts of international terrorism.

SEC. 6. REPORT REQUIRED.

    Beginning 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and 
every 90 days thereafter, the President shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees a report describing--
            (1) the nuclear and other military capabilities of Iran; 
        and
            (2) the support, if any, provided by Iran for acts of 
        international terrorism.

SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act--
            (1) the term ``act of international terrorism'' means an 
        act--
                    (A) which is violent or dangerous to human life and 
                that is a violation of the criminal laws of the United 
                States or of any State or that would be a criminal 
                violation if committed within the jurisdiction of the 
                United States or any State; and
                    (B) which appears to be intended--
                            (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian 
                        population;
                            (ii) to influence the policy of a 
                        government by intimidation or coercion; or
                            (iii) to affect the conduct of a government 
                        by assassination or kidnapping.
            (2) the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means 
        the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the 
        Committee on International Relations of the House of 
        Representatives;
            (3) the term ``Iran'' includes any agency or 
        instrumentality of Iran;
            (4) the term ``United States'' means the several States, 
        the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 
        Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, 
        Guam, the Virgin Islands, and any other territory or possession 
        of the United States; and
            (5) the term ``United States national'' means--
                    (A) a natural person who is a citizen of the United 
                States or who owes permanent allegiance to the United 
                States;
                    (B) a corporation or other legal entity which is 
                organized under the laws of the United States, any 
                State or territory thereof, or the District of 
                Columbia, if natural persons who are nationals of the 
                United States own, directly or indirectly, more than 50 
                percent of the outstanding capital stock or other 
                beneficial interest in such legal entity; and
                    (C) any foreign subsidiary of a corporation or 
                other legal entity described in subparagraph (B).
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