Thank you Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Lantos and distinguished Members of
the Committee for this opportunity to discuss the United States' policy toward
Iran.
Let me begin by noting that this Committee is surely right to focus on U.S.
policy toward Iran at this time. Successive U.S. administrations have recognized
that Iran's regime poses a profound threat to U.S. interests in the Middle East
and more broadly across the globe. Over the past six months, however, since
the August 2005 inauguration of President Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, this threat
has intensified as Iran's approach to the world has become even more radical.
Today, the Iranian leadership is actively working against all that the U.S.
and our allies desire for the region peace in Lebanon, peace between Israel
and the Palestinians, and an end to terrorism. In fact, no country stands more
resolutely opposed to our hope for peace and freedom in theMiddle East than
Iran.
Iran's leadership directly threatens vital American interests in four distinct
and grave areas:
* its pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability;
* its role as the "Central Banker" in directing and funding terror;
* its determination to dominate the Middle East as the most powerful state in
the Persian Gulf region; and finally,
* its repression of the democratic hopes of the Iranian people.
Crafting an effective response to this Iranian threat is as important as any
challenge America faces in the world today. It is critical that we succeed.
The endurance of the Iranian regime and its extremist policies and the alarming
stridency of its leaders, who have spent more than a quarter-century leading
chants of "Death to America," mean that inaction or failure is simply
not an option. For this reason, President Bush and Secretary Rice have placed
the highest priority on opposing Iran's policies across the board in the greater
Middle East region.
The dangers posed by the Iranian regime are complex and diverse, and they necessitate
an equally multi-faceted and sophisticated American response. We have constructed
a new and comprehensive policy that is designed to prevent Tehran from achieving
each of its objectives and as the issue of Iran's nuclear ambitions moves this
week to the United Nations Security Council, it is clear that we are on the
right track.
As Secretary Rice reported to this Committee two weeks ago, our policy toward
Iran is clear and focused. We seek to work within a broad international coalition
of countries to deny Iran a nuclear weapons capability; to stop its sponsorship
of terrorism in the region and around the world; to coalesce with Arab governments,
our European allies and friends from across the world to blunt Tehran's regional
ambitions; and finally to extend support to the Iranian people, especially the
millions of young Iranians who suffer due to the regime's repression and economic
misrule and crave opportunities to connect with the wider world. I will review
each of these essential components of our policy, and finish by offering my
thoughts on the ways in which Congress can enhance U.S. efforts to oppose the
Iranian regime.
Iran Nuclear Proliferation
The greatest immediate threat posed by the Ahmadi-Nejad government is Iran's
clear desire to acquire a nuclear weapons capability.
Around the world, there is simply no substantial difference of opinion about
what Iran's nuclear program is intended to achieve. Iran's actions its history
of deception and continuing efforts to avoid full cooperation with the International
Atomic Energy Agency have convinced leaders of every political persuasion, in
every corner of the globe, that Iran's leaders intend to acquire nuclear weapons.
In my last twelve months of countless discussions with officials from Europe,
Russia, India, China and other countries, I have not encountered a single person
who has found the ritualistic public denials of the Iranian leadership convincing.
Not a single one has disputed the danger posed if Iran were to succeed. In short,
there is no international debate about Iran's aims it is universally agreed
that Iran is seeking nuclear weapons. With the possible exception of Cuba, Syria,
and Venezuela, no other country wants to see Iran succeed.
This widespread international concern represents a tremendous asset for our
efforts to counter Iran's nuclear ambitions. Our diplomatic activities over
the past year have been designed to assemble an ever wider coalition of countries
to prevent Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon. This coalition has grown in number
and strength. We have taken over the past 12 months a series of steps to blunt
Iran's ambitions and isolate it.
In March 2005, Secretary Rice announced our support for the EU-3's diplomatic
negotiations with Iran, which was intended to halt Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
This was a significant step forward for U.S. policy. The EU-3 offered a proposal
that would grant Iran far-reaching economic incentives, including access to
and assistance with peaceful nuclear reactors. The United States offered its
own incentives we agreed to consider licensing the sale of spare parts for Iran's
aging civilian airliners and dropping our prior objections to Iran's bid to
join the World Trade Organization. Last August, Iran rejected the EU-3 proposal,
unilaterally broke off negotiations with the Europeans, and resumed uranium
conversion in violation of the Paris Agreement.
This began a new and more demanding phase of our diplomatic campaign. After
Iran's provocative actions, we and the Europeans worked for months and succeeded
in creating a broad international coalition to pressure Iran to abandon its
nuclear program. In October 2005, Secretary Rice traveled to Moscow to convince
Russia of the importance of cohesion on this issue. I made eleven trips to Europe
in 2005 to consult with our European allies, Russia, China and
India on Iran. In November, President Bush offered public U.S. backing for a
Russian proposal to supply Russian fuel for Iran's peaceful nuclear reactors
in exchange for a permanent suspension of enrichment activity within Iran itself.
The Iranian regime had every opportunity to change course and agree to suspend
nuclear activities, but rejected the proposal and insisted on its right and
intention to carry out enrichment activities on its own soil. Iran tried throughout
2005 to divide the U.S. from Europe and then Russia, China, India and other
countries. But its leaders miscalculated our ability to construct a strong international
coalition.
In response to Iran's difficult and confrontational approach, in late January
2006 Secretary Rice successfully persuaded all five permanent Members of the
UN
Security Council to vote together at the IAEA to report Iran to the UNSC. On
February 4, the Permanent Five, along with a massive global coalition comprised
of countries as diverse as India, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Egypt, and Yemen, spoke
with one voice: These countries, all represented in the IAEA Board of Governors,
adopted a resolution to report Iran's noncompliance to the UN Security Council.
We agreed to give Iran thirty days to reflect on its isolation.
The thirty days is now up. Iran has not met the conditions of the IAEA. We will
therefore start a new phase of diplomacy -- action by the UN Security Council
starting next week. The UN Security Council is the right place to intensify
the international debate on Iran's nuclear ambitions. We plan a concerted approach
at the UN that gradually escalates pressure on Iran. We will shine a bright
spotlight on Iran's nuclear program. We intend to participate in a vigorous
international debate about Iran's nuclear ambitions. The Security Council will
consider a Presidential Statement, or a Chapter 7 resolution. If after all those
steps were taken Iran has not acceded to the wishes of the international community,
then of course we would have to look at possible targeted sanctions, which a
number of countries are already beginning to explore. Any sanctions we would
consider will be specifically targeted to pressure the regime and Iran's nuclear
and missile programs, rather than hurting the great majority of innocent Iranians.
Going forward, we will do everything we can to maintain the widest possible
international consensus on the steps Iran must take, and continue to keep Iran
isolated on this issue. Iran's leadership must realize that its only available
choice is the one that serves its people's true national interests a strategic
decision to end its pursuit of nuclear weapons.
While we make it clear that no option is off the table, the U.S. strongly supports
a peaceful, negotiated settlement of the Iranian nuclear problem. That is why
we supported the EU3 process, and will continue to work with all our allies
through the UN to change Iran's behavior.
Our message to Tehran is clear: recommit to the Paris Agreement, return to full
suspension of all enrichment-related and reprocessing activities, and return
to
negotiations.
Iran's Terrorist Sponsorship and Regional Ambitions
A second critical dimension of the threat posed by the Iranian regime is its
role as the most active state sponsor of terrorism in the world today. Iranian
leaders consider extremism and terror to be legitimate tools of propagating
their influence domestically and regionally. Ultimately, our concern is focused
on not simply the tool, but also the objective Tehran's aspiration to assert
influence over its neighbors and frustrate democracy and development in the
Persian Gulf and broader Middle East.
Across the region, the record of the Islamic Republic is one of violence and
radicalism. This places Iran in direct opposition to each of America's most
important interests in the region.
In Iraq, we have worked tirelessly and at great cost over the past three years
to help Iraqis develop a pluralistic, democratic, federal, and united Iraq which
is stable and at peace with its neighbors. This is a historic effort, and one
that is ultimately led by Iraqis themselves. The Iranian people who were among
the greatest victims of Saddam Hussein's brutality would benefit from a secure
and successful Iraq. However, for their part, the Iranian leadership has played
a provocative and problematic role. They have interfered in Iraq's internal
affairs by supporting sectarian militias and extremist groups and assisting
anti-Coalition forces in Iraq by supplying weapons, training and explosives.
As Secretary Rumsfeld said yesterday, Iran's activities are "harmful to
the future of Iraq." Tehran is responsible for at least some of the increasing
lethality of anti-Coalition attacks in 2005 by providing Shia militants with
the capability to build IEDs with explosively formed projectiles
similar to those developed by Iran and Lebanese Hizballah.
Iran has also come into direct confrontation with our regional interests with
its campaign to undermine the fragile progress toward peace between Israelis
and Palestinians. Iran's leadership has made no secret of its hostility toward
Israel President Ahmadi-Nejad rightly earned severe international condemnation
for his outrageous vow to wipe Israel off the map. We take his words seriously.
Tehran provides money, weapons, and training to HAMAS and other Palestinian
rejectionist groups. Iran's support for these groups fuels terrorist violence
in Israel and the Palestinian Territories. It is intended to subvert the efforts
of the international community to advance the prospects for lasting peace and
security between Palestinians and Israelis. Alone among all other governments,
Iran is championing the hateful language in the HAMAS covenant and encouraging
HAMAS leaders to ignore the requirements of responsible leadership and the conditions
articulated by the Quartet to ensure the continuation of international aid to
the Palestinian Authority.
Closely related to its destructive approach to peace between Israelis and Palestinians
is Iran's long-time relationship with Hizballah in Lebanon, which is responsible
for more American deaths than any other terrorist organization apart from al-Qaida.
More than a year after the brutal assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik
Hariri and the momentous Cedar Revolution, Lebanon has made great strides. Iran's
ongoing and extensive support to Hizballah runs in direct contradiction to the
clearly articulated desire of the Lebanese people for sovereignty and democracy.
Iran is working within a coalition of rejectionists in Lebanon. Members of Lebanese
Hizbullah have received explosives training in Iran arranged by the Iranian
government's intelligence services. In January 2006, Ahmadi-Nejad again visited
Syria and met with the leaders of Hizbullah, Islamic Jihad, HAMAS, and the Popular
Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP-GC pro-Syrian faction). We continue
to work closely with the UN and key allies to urge Lebanon to
implement fully UNSCR 1559, which calls for the dismantling of all armed militias
in Lebanon, including Lebanese Hizbullah.
We are also deeply concerned about Iran's unwillingness to bring to justice
senior al-Qaida members who are wanted for murdering Americans and others in
the 1998 East Africa Embassy bombings and for plotting to kill countless others.
Iran has refused to identify these senior al-Qaida members in its custody on
"security grounds." Iran has also resisted numerous calls to transfer
custody of these individuals to the U.S., their countries-of-origin, or third
countries to face justice. Iranian judiciary officials claimed to have tried
and convicted some Iranian supporters of al-Qa'ida during 2004, but refused
to provide details.
Just as with its nuclear ambitions, Iran's support for terrorism and regional
agenda requires a determined American approach and a global alliance. We have
sanctioned Iran as a State Sponsor of Terrorism, and called for the regime to
abide by the requirements of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1373 to deny safe
haven to those who plan, support, or commit terrorist acts, and to affirmatively
take steps to prevent terrorist acts by providing early warning to other states
by exchange of information.
We are also devoting significant effort to ensure that Iran's efforts to sow
instability among Palestinians will not succeed. Working with the Quartet, we
have clearly articulated the conditions that the elected Hamas leadership must
meet to ensure true international support for the Palestinian Authority and
fulfill the Palestinian people's desire for a better life. At the same time,
we are mindful of avoiding a humanitarian crisis and working to redirect our
assistance to avoid any deterioration that might benefit Iran's radical ambitions.
We also continue to urge other governments to press Iran on its support for
and sponsorship of terrorism, and on its threatening behavior towards its neighbors.
Just two weeks ago, Secretary Rice met with leaders in Cairo, Riyadh, Beirut,
and Abu Dhabi, and with the Gulf Cooperation Council. She highlighted the destabilizing
effects of Iran's hostile foreign policy, including its support for terrorism
and desire to acquire nuclear weapons. The Arab countries should not wish to
see Iran contribute to nuclear proliferation in the region. We intend to work
closely with the Arab governments to thwart Iran's support for terror and counter
its destabilizing influences across the region.
State of Iranian Democracy and Human Rights
As we work to end the threat posed by the Iranian regime's nuclear ambitions
and sponsorship of terror, we also wish to support the Iranian people in their
aspirations for freedom. Some in the West watched with hope and anticipation
over the course of the late 1990s, as Iranians voiced their clear desire for
a
government that pursued their interests in a better life, free from state harassment,
ideological impositions, and isolation from the world community.
Sadly, we know the outcome of these efforts newspapers were shuttered and journalists
jailed, student demonstrators were beaten and imprisoned, and
activists from all walks of life found their efforts to promote political change
stymied and repressed.
The hard-liners in Iran mounted an all-out defense of their hold on the regime
and its people, culminating in last June's election of Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad
as
its president. The election itself was deeply flawed :
-- A small group of clerics prevented hundreds of declared candidates, including
all the women, from running for President. Only a handful whose loyalty to the
regime seemed assured were permitted to run.
-- Hard-liners undertook a concerted, last-minute campaign through their networks
of influence in the mosques, the military, and the Revolutionary Guard to mobilize
support for Ahmadi-Nejad.
-- The polling was reportedly rife with manipulation and fraud.
From this inherently flawed process came the ascent of Ahmadi-Nejad.
Some Iranian citizens may have voted for Ahmadi-Nejad with the sincere hope
that he represented change from the corrupt, old guard of the regime. If so,
they have been sorely disappointed. Many who had hoped for a break from the
corrupt past have been appalled by the rhetoric and policies of the new president
and have seen him do nothing to improve their standard of living. The Iranian
people deserve better.
His repeated denial of the Holocaust and his threats to "wipe Israel off
the map" have earned the legitimate outrage of the international community,
and have deeply shamed a country that until its revolution 27 years ago had
a unique history of tolerance and a large Jewish community.
Just as his comments and actions have isolated Iran internationally, Ahmadi-Nejad
has tried to turn the clock back for Iranians at home. The regime issued edicts
banning Western music and demanding that Iranian television broadcast fewer
programs about women's issues. He has put forward a budget that would make Iran
more dependent than ever on oil revenues, and make its economy even less competitive
in attracting domestic or foreign investment.
Ahmadi-Nejad may be its most public face, but he is by no means the only hardliner
or radical in the Iranian regime. Although the Islamic Republic is a complex
system with multiple power centers, today, all of the levers of power in Iran
are in the hands of hard-liners. These men reject the basic notion that the
governed should determine their leaders and their nation's course and who use
religious faith to justify perpetuating their absolute hold on power.
Perpetuating the survival of the regime remains the highest priority for the
Iranian leadership and has empowered an increasingly repressive approach to
the Iranian citizenry. The regime's poor human rights record worsened throughout
2005, including summary executions, disappearances, extremist vigilantism, widespread
use of torture, solitary confinement, and other degrading treatment. Juvenile
offenders were executed, and sentences of stoning continue to be handed down.
Discrimination against women and religious and ethnic minority groups, including
Jews, Sunnis and Sufi Muslims, persists. The Baha'i community has faced particular
harassment. In December 2005 the longest held Baha'i prisoner died in prison
of undisclosed causes.
Just as the Middle East is beginning to open to greater political participation
and economic reform, it is especially disturbing to note the intensifying repression
of the Iranian people. Protesters have been arrested and tortured. Journalists
and web-bloggers continue to be arrested and mistreated for daring to publish
their opinions. In February the Iranian regime answered the pleas of Tehran
bus drivers for better working conditions by sending paid thugs to beat them.
Journalist and political activist Akbar Ganji has spent nearly six years in
prison for his reporting on the murders of Iranian dissidents and his advocacy
of a secular Iranian republic. Having endured solitary confinement, a hunger
strike, and reported torture, Ganji is due to be released next week, but it
is unclear whether the Iranian regime will indeed release him.
We have worked cooperatively with a range of other countries to highlight the
situation of Ganji and the many other Iranians who have been imprisoned unjustly
or otherwise punished by the regime for expressing their views. At the UN General
Assembly, for the third year in a row, we co-sponsored and helped ensure passage
of a Canadian resolution condemning Iran's human rights abuses. This sent an
important signal to the Iranian people and their government of continued international
concern at Iran's mistreatment of its citizens.
As President Bush has said, it is important that the Iranian people know we
will stand with them in their struggle. We are trying to do a great deal more
to help Iranians who are trying to bring about peaceful democratic change. In
the face of their difficult internal conditions, the people of Iran regularly
give the world reason for hope about the country's future. Iranians know that
their government may punish them for voicing their views on the Internet or
in the newspapers, and yet journalists continue to write provocative pieces,
and thousands of other Iranians post their thoughts to web-blogs every day.
They gather on the streets to demand better pay and working conditions although
the forceful reaction of the regime's thugs is a bitter reality. Iranians have
found ways to endure in a system that strives to deprive them of their basic
rights and culture and we are confident that they will also find ways to change
that system.
What the Administration and Congress Can Do
Here, I would like to suggest how the U.S. Congress can help to support change
and reform in Iran. The first and most important action that Congress can take
is the appropriation of funding requested last month by Secretary Rice for an
additional $75 million to expand our effort to reach out to the Iranian people.
This funding will build upon the $10 million provided by Congress in FY 2006
to support the cause of freedom and human rights in Iran. The supplemental request
would support an ambitious program of activities that will promote peaceful
change and democratization in Iran.
Fifty-five million dollars, the largest portion, will be dedicated to communicating
our message to the Iranian people, offering them unbiased information. Funds
will be used to greatly expand our television broadcasting in Farsi into Iran
to penetrate Iran's government dominated media. We will use tools we already
have through the Broadcasting Board of Governors while supporting the development
of competitive and independent Farsi television and radio. We intend to work
through U.S. Government sponsored media, such as the Voice of America and Radio
Farda, as well as broadcasting organizations in the private sector. We will
seek to develop civic education campaigns that increase understanding of the
rights and responsibilities of citizens in a democracy through written publications
and new technologies such as pod casting, SMS messaging, and the internet.
We plan to utilize $ 15 million of the supplemental request -- in addition to
the $10 million that Congress has already appropriated -- to empower local activists
and thus further human rights, support and strengthen civil society, help Iranians
acquire the skills of citizenry and advocacy, support alternative political
centers of gravity, improve justice and accountability, and increase tolerance
and freedom of speech, assembly, and other basic rights for the Iranian people.
Finally, we will expand our outreach to young Iranians who have never experienced
democracy. We will spend $5 million on Iranian student education and international
exchanges, providing scholarships as well as creating professional, cultural,
sports and youth exchanges designed to build bridges between our two nations.
If Iranians are banned from playing Mozart in Iran, we will help them to do
so in our country.
We are also working to better ensure that we streamline the process for expeditiously
awarding and allocating our grants. To this end the Department of State is working
with the Departments of Treasury, Commerce, and others to secure the necessary
licenses and waivers for our grantees to do their work.
Re-Authorizing ILSA
As you can see, the Administration entirely shares Congress' deep concerns about
Iran -- its pursuit of nuclear weapons; its role as the "central banker"
and leading state-sponsor of terrorism, including support for groups that oppose
Middle East peace with violence; its destabilizing role in Iraq; and its oppression
of its own people.
The House has already taken a very helpful step by giving overwhelming support
to a resolution authored by Chairman Hyde and introduced by Congresswoman
Ros-Lehtinen and Congressman Lantos that condemns Iranian nuclear policy and
calls for a strong response by the Security Council.
As the Secretary has said, the Iran Libya Sanctions Act (or "ILSA")
has been "useful to us as a tool." In particular, the existence of
the law has underlined the depth of our concerns about Iran's pursuit of WMD
and support for terrorism, and has provided a platform for continually raising
those concerns with others.
We very much welcome the interest of the House and this committee in working
with the Administration on legislation relating to Iran. We are particularly
encouraged by those provisions of HR 282 that provide support for democracy
in Iran. We would also support a reauthorization of ILSA for Iran (excluding
Libya) for a further five year term.
At the same time, we are concerned with those provisions of HR 282 that would
strain relations with our close allies whose help we need to change Iran's behavior.
Since ILSA's original enactment and the subsequent extension of the law, there
has been a paradigm shift on confronting the threats posed by Iran: increasingly,
other governments share our views and concerns, and are working cooperatively
with us to make their weight felt. Iran is working very hard to divide the Permanent
-5 members of the UN Security Council, and we believe that some of the provisions
in ILSA would make it easier for Iran to succeed at this game. We believe it
is essential to strengthen the unprecedented coalition we currently have in
place and would be concerned about any step we might take that could complicate
our diplomacy.
Further, we believe that some provisions in the bill could constrain the administration's
flexibility, just when we need to be able to maintain all of our policy options
for dealing with Iran. I am sure this is not the intention of those sponsoring
legislation.
Finally, we must take care not to jump to conclusions about what kinds of sanctions
might be appropriate. We are confident that if it becomes necessary like-minded
states will be able to agree on measures that will have a significant effect
on Iran's economy.
We entirely share Congress' concerns about Iran and look forward to working
closely with you as we move forward. We want to keep the focus on Iran's misdeeds,
not create friction and division in the camp that is confronting Iran.
State Department Capabilities
Beyond our legislative agenda, let me update you on an important initiative
that the State Department has undertaken as part of Secretary Rice's global
repositioning to support Transformational Diplomacy. For more than a generation,
the U.S has had no diplomatic contacts with Iran a unique state of affairs replicated
in no other country in the world. We have not trained Foreign Service Officers
to speak Farsi or established a significant effort to follow Iranian developments.
This left a serious divergence between our capabilities and the profound challenges
before us concerning Iran.
Secretary Rice directed us to address this disparity. During the last month,
the State Department has created a new Office of Iranian Affairs within the
Bureau for Near East and North African Affairs (NEA). We will add a significant
number of diplomats to focus solely on Iran in this office, as well as adding
new positions to our Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Bureau to coordinate
and expedite programming for Iran. We will also create by this summer a new
office focused on Iran at the U.S. Consulate in Dubai. In addition, we will
increase the number of officers working on Iran at other diplomatic posts in
the region.We will expand our Farsi language training to train a new generation
of American diplomats in Iranian history, culture, and language.
As all of you are aware, since Iran seized our embassy and held 52 of our diplomats
hostage for 444 days, we have not stationed a single diplomat in Iran or trained
many officers in Farsi. We do not intend to re-open our Embassy any time soon.
But we do plan to put more people, better trained, on the job of watching Iran
both in the region on Iran's doorstep and here in Washington -- so that we can
block its destructive policies and so that we can communicate more effectively
with the people of Iran. These enhancements are a key part of Secretary Rice's
Global Diplomatic Repositioning initiative to shift our people to where they
are needed most.
Conclusion
Let me conclude by thanking the Congress for the effort and interest that you
have devoted to Iran and for your support for our policies. As we move forward,
we will need your help on a variety of fronts:
* to reach out the Iranian population with approval of our $75 million supplemental
request;
* to re-authorize ILSA in a format that facilitates the strengthening of the
broad global coalition that is already achieving real progress in addressing
Iran's nuclear ambitions; and
* to continue to support the Administration as we seek to stop Iran's pursuit
of a nuclear weapons, its support for terrorism, its harmful meddling in the
affairs of the region, and end its repression of its own citizenry.
It may be a long struggle to block Iranian ambitions in each of these areas
and to roll back their dangerous policies, but it is necessary for achieving
a better, more democratic future for the Middle East and greater security for
U.S. interests across the world. The problem of the Iranian regime has become
entrenched over the course of an entire generation, and it may require a generational
struggle to address it, but we have no choice but to do so in a serious, committed
and effective way.
Released on March 8, 2006