| (WASHINGTON) – U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Ranking Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today called on the Administration to renew the sanctions imposed on Syria under U.S. law and previous executive orders, and to further strengthen U.S. sanctions against the regime. Statement by Ros-Lehtinen:
“Today I wrote to the Administration, urging it to re-impose sanctions against Syria – due to expire today – in light of the multifaceted threat that the regime continues to pose to the United States, our allies, and international security.
“Syria’s pursuit of missiles and unconventional weapons, including nuclear capabilities, is well documented. The Syrian regime also continues to sponsor and provide critical support to a long list of Palestinian and Islamist extremist groups, such as Hamas, Hezbollah, and like-minded organizations in Iraq.
“Syria also reportedly continues to illegally transfer arms and provide other military support to Hezbollah, in clear violation of successive United Nations Security Council resolutions.
“We must act swiftly to limit Syria’s ability to support international Islamist extremism and threaten the world with unconventional weapons and ballistic missiles.”
Background: Presidential authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701-1706) and the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2003 (Public Law 108-175) was first exercised through the issuance of Executive Order 13338, which declared a national emergency with respect to the actions of the Government of Syria. To deal with this national emergency, Executive Order 13338 authorized the blocking of property of certain persons and prohibited the exportation or re-exportation of certain goods to Syria. On April 25, 2006, and February 13, 2008, Executive Order 13399 and Executive Order 13460 were issued, respectively, to take additional steps regarding this national emergency. On May 7, 2008, the national emergency was renewed for an additional year.
Note: Ros-Lehtinen is the author of H.R. 1206, the Syria Accountability and Liberation Act which, among other measures, strengthens sanctions targeting Syria’s energy infrastructure. This legislation currently has over 70 cosponsors. Ros-Lehtinen was also the lead Republican cosponsor of the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2003 (Public Law 108-175).
######
|
