[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 19 (Wednesday, January 29, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S485-S486]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS
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SENATE RESOLUTION 43--AFFIRMING THE THREATS TO WORLD STABILITY FROM A
NUCLEAR WEAPONS-CAPABLE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN.
Mr. GRAHAM (for himself, Mr. Fetterman, and Mrs. Britt) submitted the
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign
Relations:
S. Res. 43
Whereas numerous officials of the Islamic Republic of Iran
have repeatedly made statements against the United States,
Israel, and their allies and partners, including--
(1) the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran,
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who stated--
(A) ``As long as America continues its wickedness,
interference, and savagery, the Iranian nation will not
abandon `Death to America'.'';
(B) ``The Zionist regime is a deadly, cancerous growth
and a detriment to this region. It will undoubtedly be
uprooted and destroyed'';
(C) ``We will definitely do everything necessary to
prepare the Iranian nation for confronting the Arrogant
Powers, whether militarily, in terms of armament, or
politically. Our officials are already working on this''; and
(D) ``The United States of America and the Zionist
regime will definitely receive a crushing response for what
they do against Iran and the Resistance Front'';
(2) an adviser to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic
Republic of Iran, Kamal Kharrazi, who stated, ``We have no
decision to build a nuclear bomb but should Iran's existence
be threatened, there will be no choice but to change our
military doctrine''; and
(3) former foreign ministry spokesperson of the Islamic
Republic of Iran, Nasser Kanani, who stated, ``This action of
the three European countries [France, Germany and the United
Kingdom] is the continuation of the hostile policy of the
West and economic terrorism against the people of Iran, which
will face the appropriate and proportionate action of the
Islamic Republic of Iran'';
Whereas the Islamic Republic of Iran is directly
responsible for the death and injury of United States
servicemembers, including--
(1) between 2005 and 2011, when the Quds Force, a branch of
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, provided
explosively formed penetrators to Iranian-backed fighters in
Iraq and killed 195 United States troops and wounded nearly
another 900 United States troops;
(2) since the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, where
Iranian-backed proxies have attacked United States troops in
the region more than 170 times; and
(3) on January 28, 2024, when an Iranian-backed proxy
launched a drone that killed 3 United States troops and
wounded nearly another 40 United States troops stationed at
Tower 22 in Jordan;
Whereas the United States Government has reported--
(1) ``Iran's annual financial backing to Hizballah -- which
in recent years has been estimated at $700 million --
accounts for the overwhelming majority of [Hizballah's]
annual budget'';
(2) ``Hamas has received funding, weapons, and training
from Iran''; and
(3) ``Iran also provides up to $100 million annually in
combined support to Palestinian terrorist groups, including
Hamas'';
Whereas the Islamic Republic of Iran's support to the
Houthis, including through the provision of ballistic and
cruise missiles and unmanned weapons systems, has allowed the
Houthis to carry out attacks against United States partners;
Whereas, since the Iranian Revolution in 1979, the Islamic
Republic of Iran has engaged in acts of international
terrorism and continuously threatened the United States,
Israel, and their partners and allies;
Whereas, on January 19, 1984, the United States designated
the Islamic Republic of Iran as a state sponsor of terrorism
for repeatedly providing support for acts of international
terrorism;
Whereas, on April 11, 2006, the Islamic Republic of Iran
announced that it had enriched uranium for the first time to
a level close to 3.5 percent at the Pilot Fuel Enrichment
Plant in Natanz, Iran;
Whereas, on December 23, 2006, the United Nations Security
Council adopted Resolution 1737 (2006), which imposed
sanctions with respect to the Islamic Republic of Iran for
its failure to suspend enrichment activities;
Whereas the United Nations Security Council subsequently
adopted Resolutions 1747 (2007), 1803 (2008), and 1929
(2010), all of which targeted the nuclear program of, and
imposed additional sanctions with respect to, the Islamic
Republic of Iran;
Whereas, on February 3, 2009, the Islamic Republic of Iran
announced that it had launched its first satellite, which
raised concern over the applicability of the satellite to the
ballistic missile program;
Whereas, in September 2009, the United States, the United
Kingdom, and France revealed the existence of the clandestine
Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant in the Islamic Republic of Iran,
years after construction started on the plant;
Whereas, on January 28, 2017, the Islamic Republic of Iran
conducted a test of a medium-range ballistic missile, which
traveled an estimated 600 miles and provides the Islamic
Republic of Iran the capability to threaten United States
military installations in the Middle East;
Whereas, in 2018, Israel seized a significant portion of
the nuclear archive of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which
contained tens of thousands of files and compact discs
relating to past efforts at nuclear weapon design,
development, and manufacturing by the Islamic Republic of
Iran;
Whereas, on September 27, 2018, Israel revealed the
existence of a secret warehouse housing radioactive material
in the Turquz Abad district in Tehran, and an inspection of
the warehouse by the International Atomic Energy Agency
(referred to in this preamble as the ``IAEA'') detected
radioactive particles, which the Government of Iran failed to
adequately explain;
Whereas, on June 19, 2020, the IAEA adopted Resolution GOV/
2020/34, which expressed ``serious concern . . . that Iran
has not provided access to the Agency under the Additional
Protocol to two locations'';
Whereas, on April 17, 2021, the IAEA verified that the
Islamic Republic of Iran had begun to enrich uranium to 60
percent purity;
Whereas, on August 14, 2021, the former President of the
Islamic Republic of Iran, Hassan Rouhani, stated, ``Iran's
Atomic Energy Organization can enrich uranium by 20 percent
and 60 percent and if ... our reactors need it, it can enrich
uranium to 90 percent purity'';
Whereas, on April 17, 2022, the Islamic Republic of Iran
confirmed the relocation of a production facility for
advanced centrifuges from an aboveground facility at Karaj,
Iran, to the fortified underground Natanz Enrichment Complex;
Whereas, on April 19, 2022, the Department of State
released a report stating there are ``serious concerns''
about ``possible undeclared nuclear material and activities
in Iran'';
Whereas, on May 30, 2022, the IAEA reported that the
Islamic Republic of Iran had achieved a stockpile of 43.3
kilograms (95.5 pounds) of 60 percent highly enriched
uranium, roughly enough material for a nuclear weapon;
Whereas, on June 8, 2022, the Islamic Republic of Iran
turned off surveillance cameras installed by the IAEA to
monitor uranium enrichment activities at nuclear sites in the
country;
Whereas, on July 14, 2022, in The Jerusalem U.S.-Israel
Strategic Partnership Joint Declaration, which was signed
between President Biden and Israel, the United States
stressed its commitment ``never to allow Iran to acquire a
nuclear weapon, and that [the United States] is prepared to
use all elements of its national power to ensure that
outcome'';
Whereas, on July 27, 2022, the head of the Atomic Energy
Organization of Iran, Mohammad Eslami, announced that the
Islamic Republic of Iran is building a new nuclear reactor at
the Isfahan Nuclear Technology Center, which will be one of
the largest nuclear facilities in Iran;
Whereas, on December 2, 2022, IAEA Director General Rafael
Mariano Grossi stated, ``Iran informed us they were tripling
... their capacity to enrich uranium at 60 percent, which is
very close to military level, which is 90 percent'';
Whereas, on January 25, 2023, Director General Grossi
stated, ``One thing is true: [the Islamic Republic of Iran
has] amassed enough nuclear material for several nuclear
weapons'';
Whereas, on February 27, 2023, the IAEA reported that the
Islamic Republic of Iran had enriched uranium to 83.7
percent, which is just short of the 90 percent threshold for
weapons-grade fissile material;
Whereas, on September 4, 2023, an IAEA report estimated the
total uranium stockpile of the Islamic Republic of Iran to be
3795.5 kilograms (8367.65 pounds) and that the Islamic
Republic of Iran has enough fissile material, that if further
enriched, would be sufficient to produce several nuclear
weapons;
Whereas, on October 18, 2023, United Nations Security
Council Resolution 2231 (2015) lapsed and many proliferation-
related penalties and restrictions were lifted, allowing the
Islamic Republic of Iran to test or transfer ballistic
missiles, which may contribute to the further development of
a nuclear weapon delivery system;
[[Page S486]]
Whereas, on December 28, 2023, the governments of the
United States, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom
jointly declared, ``The production of high-enriched uranium
by Iran has no credible civilian justification. These
decisions demonstrate Iran's lack of good will towards de-
escalation and represent reckless behavior in a tense
regional context . . . Iran must fully cooperate with the
IAEA to enable it to provide assurances that its nuclear
program is exclusively peaceful.'';
Whereas, on February 27, 2024, a spokesperson for the
Department of State stated, ``We remain seriously concerned
about Iran's continued expansion of its nuclear program in
ways that have no credible civilian purpose, including its
continued production of highly enriched uranium'';
Whereas, on June 3, 2024, Director General Grossi stated,
``Many countries have said if Iran gets nuclear weapons, they
will do the same. Adding nuclear weapons to the cauldron of
the Middle East is a very bad idea.'';
Whereas, on June 5, 2024, by a vote of 20 to 2, the United
States joined other nations in formally censuring the Islamic
Republic of Iran for advances in their nuclear program and
failure to cooperate with the IAEA;
Whereas, on June 18, 2024, it was reported that
intelligence agencies of the United States and Israel were
looking into information that the Islamic Republic of Iran
may have developed a computer model that could be used for
research and development of nuclear weapons;
Whereas, on July 23, 2024, the Office of the Director of
National Intelligence published an assessment, in accordance
with Iran Nuclear Weapons Capability and Terrorism Monitoring
Act of 2022 (22 U.S.C. 8701 note; Public Law 117-263), which
stated, ``Iran continues to increase the size of its uranium
stockpile, increase its enrichment capacity, and develop,
manufacture, and operate advanced centrifuges. Tehran has the
infrastructure and experience to quickly produce weapons-
grade uranium, at multiple facilities'';
Whereas, on November 28, 2024, the Islamic Republic of Iran
informed the IAEA that it planned to start enriching uranium
with thousands of advanced centrifuges at its Fordow and
Natanz plants, while also installing more uranium-enriching
centrifuges at those locations;
Whereas, on December 5, 2024, the Office of the Director of
National Intelligence published another assessment, in
accordance with Iran Nuclear Weapons Capability and Terrorism
Monitoring Act of 2022 (22 U.S.C. 8701 note; Public Law 117-
263), which stated--
(1) ``Iran's 20- percent and 60-percent enriched uranium
stockpiles are far greater than needed for what it claims it
will use the uranium for and Iran could produce more than a
dozen nuclear weapons if its total uranium stockpile were
further enriched''; and
(2) ``Iran probably will consider installing or operating
more advanced centrifuges, further increasing its enriched
uranium stockpile, enriching uranium up to 90 percent, or
threatening to withdraw from the Treaty on the
Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons''; and
Whereas, on December 9, 2024, France, Germany, and the
United Kingdom released a joint statement that--
(1) condemns ``Iran's latest steps . . . to expand its
nuclear programme to significantly increase the rate of
production of uranium enriched up to 60 percent'';
(2) expresses extreme concern ``to learn that Iran has
increased the number of centrifuges in use and started
preparations to install additional enrichment
infrastructure''; and
(3) ``strongly urge[s] Iran to reverse these steps, and to
immediately halt its nuclear escalation'': Now, therefore, be
it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) affirms that the Islamic Republic of Iran's continued
pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability is--
(A) a credible threat to the United States; and
(B) an existential threat to Israel and other allies and
partners in the Middle East;
(2) asserts all options should be considered to address the
nuclear threat the Islamic Republic of Iran poses to the
United States, Israel, and our allies and partners;
(3) demands the Islamic Republic of Iran to immediately
cease engaging in any and all activities that threaten the
national security interests of the United States, Israel, and
our allies and partners, including--
(A) enriching uranium;
(B) developing or possessing delivery vehicles capable of
carrying nuclear warheads; and
(C) developing or possessing a nuclear warhead.
SECTION 1. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this resolution may be construed to authorize
the use of military force or the introduction of United
States Armed Forces into hostilities.
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