The United States Senate has unanimously voted in favor of a bill that gives President Obama the right to impose sanctions on companies doing business with Iran in the energy sector. The Senate bill aims to punish non-Iranian firms that do business in Iran's energy sector or help the Islamic republic produce or import refined products like petrol by blocking them from doing business in the US market. Although Iran has large reserves of crude oil, it lacks refining capacities and relies on imports to satisfy 40 percent of its local need for gas.
The bill will now move to a committee to be reconciled with a similar bill approved by the House of Representatives in December.
The World Jewish Congress United States warmly welcomed the vote in the Senate. Rabbi Marc Schneier, who chairs the WJC chapter in the US, said in a statement: "This legislation seeks to reinforce and increase economic pressure on Iran in order to attempt to dissuade them from pursuing what would be a devastating outcome for not only the Middle East, but to Europe and beyond. As the World Jewish Congress United States takes every opportunity in meetings at all levels with representatives of local and foreign governments in order to emphasize this danger, the United States Senate has set an example for what needs to be done internationally in order to unify against this growing threat."
A spokesman of Iran’s Foreign Ministry said in reaction to the vote: "If the US administration acts on the Senate's approval to increase pressure on the Iranian people, the Iranian people will not give up on their essential rights. Such methods will not help build confidence between the two countries." He claimed that US sanctions over the past three decades had “only strengthened our people's will for independence."
Have your say and email us your view on this news story.
