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 It will be weeks at the earliest before the bill comes to a vote
in the 100-member Senate, if it gets that far, given staunch
opposition by President Barack Obama's administration and many of
its supporters in Congress.
Democrats Robert Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, Charles Schumer, the third-ranking Democrat in the
Senate, and Republican Senator Mark Kirk, along with 23 others,
introduced the bill intended to choke off funding to Iran's nuclear
program by cutting off its oil sales.
The 13 Democrats and 13 Republicans introduced the "Nuclear Weapon
Free Iran Act" despite the Obama administration's insistence that
passing such a measure would disrupt delicate negotiations between
Tehran and world powers over the Islamic republic's nuclear program.
Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif also has said a new sanctions
law would kill the interim agreement reached in Geneva on November
24 between Iran and the "P5+1" powers. In that agreement, Tehran
agreed to limit uranium enrichment in return for an easing of
international sanctions.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said after the bill was introduced
that it would disrupt diplomacy, noting Washington could quickly
impose more sanctions if negotiations fail.
A group of 10 powerful Democratic senators, all leaders of Senate
committees, sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid
expressing opposition to any plans to introduce new sanctions, and
asking the Nevada Democrat to consult them before any moves to allow
a vote on such legislation.
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Among the Democrats signing the letter were Tim Johnson, chairman of
the Senate Banking Committee, which has jurisdiction over sanctions
legislation, and Dianne Feinstein, the chairman of the Intelligence
Committee.
The new bill would require reductions in Iran's petroleum production
and apply new penalties to Iran's engineering, mining and
construction industries if Iran violated the interim agreement or if
negotiators failed to reach a final comprehensive agreement.
But it also gives the administration up to a year to pursue a
diplomatic track resulting in the "complete and verifiable
termination" of Iran's nuclear weapons program, the group of
senators said as they announced the legislation.
"Current sanctions brought Iran to the negotiating table and a
credible threat of future sanctions will require Iran to cooperate
and act in good faith at the negotiating table," Menendez said in a
statement.
(Editing by Alistair Bell and Andre Grenon)
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