“USA*Engage opposes House passage of H.R. 4992, H.R. 5119, and H.R. 5631. The legislation would subvert U.S. compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and further disadvantage U.S. companies vis-à-vis foreign competitors with respect to commerce with Iran.
“Ironically, the House floor vote is scheduled for the one year anniversary of Implementation Day under the JCPOA. No one disputes that Iran has met its commitments under the JCPOA, which is exclusively about Iran’s nuclear program. It is also the case that under the terms of the JCPOA, U.S. companies are placed at a virtually insuperable disadvantage regarding commerce with Iran, precisely because of the remaining U.S. unilateral sanctions on Iran, which are outside the scope of the JCPOA.
“The United States and Iran remain mutually official adversaries, with apparently deep conflicts about Iran’s conduct in the region and about the Iranian government’s treatment of its citizens. But the JCPOA was negotiated between Iran and the members of the UN Security Council plus Germany. It has global warrant. To the degree that economic pressure brought Iran to negotiate the JCPOA, it was because the pressure was brought multilaterally under UN auspices.
“We urge Congress to respect the Administration’s conduct of foreign policy. Common sense would argue for continuity in a presidential election year and forbearance regarding enactment of laws that would bind the next administration’s foreign policy development and further hobble U.S. companies.”
About USA*Engage
USA*Engage (www.usaengage.org) is a coalition of small and large businesses, agriculture groups and trade associations working to seek alternatives to the proliferation of unilateral U.S. foreign policy sanctions and to promote the benefits of U.S. engagement abroad. Established in 1997 and organized under the National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org), USA*Engage leads a campaign to inform policymakers, opinion leaders, and the public about the counterproductive nature of unilateral sanctions, the importance of exports and overseas investment for American competitiveness and jobs, and the role of American companies in promoting human rights and democracy worldwide.
About the NFTC
The National Foreign Trade Council (www.nftc.org) is a leading business organization advocating an open, rules- based global trading system. Founded in 1914 by a broad-based group of American companies, the NFTC now serves hundreds of member companies through its offices in Washington and New York.Follow us on:
