WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement on legislation to address Iran’s ballistic missile provocations, including a joint statement with ranking member Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.).
“We are continuing to work on bipartisan sanctions legislation,” said Corker and Cardin. “Iran remains a bipartisan concern and we are committed to taking action to ensure that Iran does not become a threshold nuclear weapons state.”
“I appreciate Senator Cardin’s sincere efforts and look forward to continuing our discussions,” said Corker. “There is a lot of agreement over the need for congressional action targeting Iran’s flagrant ballistic missile violations and other activities that enable the regime’s destabilizing role in the region. Any legislation to that end must also deal appropriately with the waiver issue, because I believe President Obama used the Iran waivers in a manner that Congress never intended. If any waiver authority is granted to provide a degree of flexibility, we must ensure that no president, Republican or Democrat, can use this authority to enter into an international agreement without first seeking approval from two-thirds of the Senate or both houses of Congress. Since this issue is still unresolved, in the coming days, I intend to introduce legislation to address this issue and hold Iran accountable both now and in the future.”
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