NEWS
House Foreign Affairs Committee
U.S. House of Representatives
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Ranking Republican
CONTACT:
Sam Stratman, (202) 226-7875, May 15, 2007
Lee Cohen, (202) 226-1139
For IMMEDIATE Release
Ros-Lehtinen Introduces New
Legislation to Tighten Sanctions Against Syrian Regime
(WASHINGTON)
– Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Ranking Republican on the House Foreign
Affairs Committee, joined by Intelligence Committee Ranking Member, Peter
Hoekstra (R-MI); Republican Whip, Roy Blunt (R-MO); Republican Chief Deputy
Whip, Eric Cantor (R-VA); Republican Policy Committee Chairman, Thad McCotter (R-MI), among numerous other colleagues, today
introduced the Syria Accountability and Liberation Act.
“Recognizing that Syria’s
policies and actions constitute an ‘unusual and extraordinary threat to the
national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States,’ the President renewed existing
sanctions on Syria
last week. We must do more to isolate
the regime,” said Ros-Lehtinen.
“Syria’s
state-sponsorship of Islamist terrorist organizations, including those
conducting attacks in Iraq,
its development of unconventional weapons capabilities, and brutal oppression
of the Syrian people must be immediately addressed before it escalates to the
level of threat posed by Iran
today,” said Ros-Lehtinen.
“The legislation introduced today codifies existing U.S. sanctions against the Syrian government,
seeks implementation of additional U.S. sanctions, and imposes new
sanctions on those investing $5 million or more in the Syrian energy sector,”
concluded Ros-Lehtinen.
.
In addition, the Syria Accountability and Liberation Act:
·
Targets Syria’s
weapons programs by imposing new sanctions against persons and countries who
transfer or retransfer goods and technology that can aid Syria’s efforts to
obtain chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons, and the means
to deliver them;
·
Enhances U.S. efforts in
multilateral forums to address the Syrian regime’s threatening policies; and
·
Establishes a program
to support pro-democracy advocates and human rights dissidents in Syria toward transition to a government that
does not pose a threat to the U.S.,
our interests, and our allies.
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