[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 14]
[Senate]
[Pages 19083-19084]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION

  Mr. CASEY. Mr President, I would like to express my support for the 
Menendez amendment, which passed 100 to 0 and would sanction the 
Central Bank of Iran. I was proud to be an original cosponsor of this 
important legislation. The Islamic Republic of Iran has proven through 
its recent behavior its blatant disregard for its international 
commitments to the IAEA and for the universal declaration of human 
rights. Iran is a serious threat to the security of the United States, 
the Middle East, and the world.
  Last month's IAEA report on Iran said that the Agency had credible 
information that Iran may have worked on developing nuclear weapons. 
This is the most damning report yet on Iran's nuclear program and has 
served as a wake up call to the world. The United Kingdom has responded 
with tough sanctions. Italy and France have expressed support for 
tougher measures.
  This opinion has been held by many here in the Senate for a long 
time. That is why we in the Senate have been so persistent in our 
efforts to pursue tougher sanctions to isolate Iran. This is why we 
continue to strive to provide all the tools necessary to ensure that 
maximum pressure is brought to bear on the regime in Tehran.
  I appreciate the administration's efforts to engage with the Iranian 
regime since coming into office. The administration has made serious 
efforts to diplomatically engage Tehran officials. But the regime has 
rejected requests by the United States and international community for 
true dialog. Regretfully, I do not think dialog will work with this 
regime.
  The IAEA report was a culmination to months of events that showed 
Iran's brazen disregard for international norms. In October, the regime 
planned to assassinate the Saudi Ambassador to the United States. The 
Iranian regime sought to kill a senior foreign official on U.S. soil.
  There must be consequences for the planned attack on the Saudi 
Ambassador. There must be consequences for Iran's nuclear conduct as 
evidenced in the new IAEA report. This amendment makes these 
consequences clear.
  I am concerned that the administration's November 21 sanctions 
response is not adequate in responding to this new information on 
Iran's intentions. European countries, led by the United Kingdom and 
France, have called for sanctioning of the Central Bank of Iran. My 
question to the administration is this: does the IAEA report indeed 
reflect a turning point for U.S. policy? And if so, what should the 
United States do to address this looming threat? The administration's 
announcement of new sanctions on November 21 is a good step, but the 
United States must take this one step further and sanction Iran's 
Central Bank. If the IAEA report does not indicate that we have turned 
a corner with respect to this critical national security threat, I 
don't know what does.
  This administration has taken unprecedented measures to isolate the 
Iranian regime. It understands the threat posed by a nuclear Iran. And 
while I appreciate the administration's focus on this issue at this 
critical juncture in history, I believe that we must do more.
  This amendment would restrict U.S. financial institutions from doing 
business with any foreign financial institution that knowingly conducts 
financial transactions with Iran's Central Bank. With this amendment, 
we are hitting Iran where it hurts. Eighty percent of Iran's hard 
currency comes from crude oil sales, which depend on transactions 
through the Central Bank. The Central Bank of Iran is complicit in 
Iran's nuclear program. This amendment also has measures that would 
ensure that the oil markets are not affected by isolation of the 
Iranian oil industry. The amendment also requires the President to 
start a ``multilateral diplomacy initiative'' to convince other 
countries to cease oil imports from Iran.
  It has become increasingly clear in the past month that the 
international community cannot negotiate with the current leadership in 
Iran, which has proven incapable and unwilling to abide by its 
international commitments. This was made crystal clear by the planned 
attack on the Saudi Ambassador, credible evidence of illegal nuclear 
activity in the IAEA report, and the attack on the British Embassy.

[[Page 19084]]

I believe that we have turned a corner in how we should regard this 
regime in Iran.
  This means that in addition to severe sanctions, the United States 
should renew its support for democratic activists in Iran. Amid the 
remarkable change taking place across the region, the United States 
should clearly place itself on the side of democratic forces in Iran. 
Compromise with the current regime is not possible, and we, working 
with the international community, should work to engage fully with the 
democratic actors in the country. Those who ransacked the British 
Embassy do not represent the Iranian people. The majority of Iranians, 
based on the outpouring of support for the Green Movement in 2009, 
aspire for a different future.
  We have reached a pivotal moment, and we must stand on the right side 
of history. We must do all that we can to prevent Iran from gaining a 
nuclear weapon. I am proud to have cosponsored the Menendez amendment 
sanctioning the Central Bank of Iran. We must make it clear that there 
are substantial consequences to Iran's nuclear intentions.

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