Congress Lines Up to Oppose Iran Nuke Deal

Nearly 200 House lawmakers express disapproval

BY: Adam Kredo Follow @Kredo0
July 17, 2015 8:20 am

via Congress Lines Up to Oppose Iran Nuke Deal | Washington Free Beacon.

Nearly 200 House lawmakers have lined up behind a resolution opposing the recently signed Iran nuclear deal, according to a copy of the measure obtained by the Washington Free Beacon and congressional sources apprised of the situation.

Less than a week after the Obama administration agreed to a deal with Iran that will provide it with billions of dollars in economic sanctions relief, at least 171 Republican House lawmakers have backed a measure expressing disapproval of the deal, the Free Beacon has learned.

As the Obama administration works to wrangle a coalition of lawmakers in support of the deal, the House resolution appears to be a sign that many in Congress have already decided to oppose it.

Congress has 60 days to review the deal and then take an up or down vote on it. The Obama administration has already vowed to veto any rejection of the deal by Congress.

The House resolution, which has already garnered widespread support from leading lawmakers, expresses “form disapproval” of the nuclear deal and reiterates congressional support to stop Iran from building a nuclear weapon, according to a copy of the measure, which was spearheaded by Rep. Peter Roskam (R., Ill.)

The resolution also rejects key portions of the deal, including ones providing Iran with billions of dollars in assets and approving of the Islamic Republic’s right to construct ballistic missiles and freely purchase arms.

In addition, it highlights that the deal “allows key restraints on Iran’s nuclear program to expire within 10 to 15 years, including those on Iran’s domestic uranium enrichment program and heavy-water reactor at Arak,” according to the measure.

“The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action [JCPOA] fails to address Iran’s egregious human rights record, Iran’s role as the world’s leading state-sponsor of international terrorism, and Iran’s unjust imprisonment of innocent United States citizens,” the resolution states.

Lawmakers and analysts in recent days have accused the White House of trying to bypass congressional approval of the deal by going straight to the United Nations.

If the U.N. approves the deal before Congress signs off, the Obama administration could have leverage to begin removing key sanctions on Iran.

The deal also prohibits American nuclear inspectors from entering any contested Iranian site.

The resolution has already attracted the support of 171 House lawmakers and is expected to garner many more, according to congressional sources.

In addition to Roskam, 14 of 22 House committee chairs have lent their support for the resolution, as well as three members of the House leadership and other notable legislators, such as Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R., Fla.), Jim Jordon (R., Ohio), and Bill Flores (R., Texas).

Roskam told the Free Beacon that the final deal fails to adequately address key nuclear concerns and rein in Tehran’s rogue behavior.

“This agreement fails on every level to ensure Iran never acquires a nuclear weapons capability. Tehran is allowed to keep much of its nuclear infrastructure intact and is rewarded a $150 billion cash infusion from sanctions relief,” Roskam said. “The so-called ‘anytime, anywhere’ inspections regime in reality provides Iran nearly a month’s notice on inspections.”

“And, in an unprecedented last-minute concession, the U.N. arms embargo and ban on ballistic missiles will be lifted in just a few short years,” he added. “This is a bad deal and it must be stopped.”

Roskam explained that his legislation will “set the stage” for the 60-day review period being undertaken by Congress.

“The unprecedented outpouring of support for this resolution proves that Congress will not rubber-stamp a deal that severely threatens the United States and our allies by paving Iran’s path to a bomb,” he said.

One senior congressional aide familiar with the resolution said that a large number of lawmakers have already made their mind up about the deal.

“Attracting this level of opposition to the deal so early in the process is remarkable,” the source said. “Members are lining up behind this resolution for one simple reason: the administration’s nuclear agreement is an unmitigated disaster. Iran gets everything it wants and more—sanctions relief, lax inspections, conventional weapons, and even ballistic missiles.”

While the Obama administration “may be confident that it has a veto-proof majority in both chambers,” the quick “outpouring of dissent from Congress with two months before a vote could halt the agreement in its tracks,” the source said.

Investors eye rewards and risks in post-sanctions Iran

Foreign companies are flocking to seize business opportunities in Tehran, though analysts warn market is tricky

By AFP July 17, 2015, 9:25 am

via Investors eye rewards and risks in post-sanctions Iran | The Times of Israel.

TEHRAN, Iran — Foreign firms are eager to exploit the potential of Iran’s long-isolated economy following a landmark nuclear deal, but experts say doing business in the Islamic Republic will remain hugely challenging.

The agreement between Tehran and major powers announced in Vienna on Tuesday offers an opening for international companies as sanctions are rolled back in return for steps to rein in Iran’s nuclear program.

With the ink barely dry, Germany said its vice-chancellor and economy minister Sigmar Gabriel would visit Iran for three days from Sunday with a “small delegation of industry and science representatives.”

His ministry said there was “great interest on the part of German industry in normalizing and strengthening economic relations with Iran.”

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and Italian Economic Development Minister Federica Guidi also plan to visit Iran following the nuclear accord.

But despite the buzz over the historic agreement, analysts said Iran was no El Dorado for foreign firms.

“Doing business in Iran will not change overnight as the country suffers from an outdated legal system, restrictive labor laws and a lack of significant experience in dealing with international investors,” said Firas Abi Ali, an analyst at London-based research firm IHS.

French firms, particularly in the car industry, are already well established in Iran although they have suffered from the international sanctions imposed since 2006.

“Companies set to benefit most immediately” from the rollback of sanctions “are those that are already present in Iran,” said Ramin Rabii, head of Turquoise Partners Group, an investment firm in Tehran. They include firms such as Danone, Airbus and LVMH.

French manufacturer PSA Peugeot Citroen, which quit Iran, its second-largest market, in early 2012, is discussing a renewed partnership with IranKhodro.

PSA said that the nuclear agreement “should allow significant progress in ongoing discussions.”

Germany’s BDI industry federation believes exports to Iran could rise fourfold to more than 10 billion euros ($10.9 billion) in the medium-term, up from 2.4 billion in 2014, thanks to the need to modernize industry, especially the oil sector.

Italian exports — which stood at 1.15 billion euros before the sanctions, led by machine tool sales — could reach four billion euros in 2018, according to estimates from export credit company Sace quoted in the Italian press.

For major companies a priority is for Iran to be reconnected to the global network of SWIFT banking transactions to enable companies present in Iran to transfer funds directly to and from that country.

One area in need of urgent investment is the creaking oil sector.

Iran, which has the world’s fourth-biggest oil reserves, has seen its production fall to less than three million barrels per day (bpd) since 2012.

Its oil exports have roughly halved to about 1.3 million bpd, from 2.5 million bpd in 2011.

Iran also has the world’s largest reserves of gas and was the number four producer last year.

“Our priority is to develop our oil and gas fields using domestic and foreign potential,” Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said.

He said his country wanted to “accelerate” the development of the petrochemical industry, but experts said foreign energy companies face numerous hurdles.

“Although the deal will present foreign oil and gas companies in particular with a broad range of opportunities, the operating environment in a post-sanctions Iran will almost certainly remain challenging,” said Torbjorn Soltvedt, an analyst with Verisk Maplecroft.

“While Iran has committed to improving the fiscal terms offered to oil and gas companies, the country’s petroleum bureaucracy remains bloated and inefficient.”