Military

Iran-Libya Sanctions Act
Testimony to the HIRC
Deputy Assistant Secretary Philo Dibble
Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs
June 25, 2003

U.S. policy towards state sponsors of terrorism, including Iran and Libya, has always been oriented towards maximum U.S. unilateral effort to end those countries’ destructive policies, combined with maximum effort to garner international cooperation.  While there is still much to be done, we see indications that both countries are feeling increasingly pressured.  Both Iran and Libya represent great challenges, but we are making some progress in gaining international cooperation to pressure them to end their destructive policies.

IRAN:

President Bush has clearly stated that the United States supports the aspirations of the people of Iran for freedom and democracy, and he has called on the Iranian government to fulfill these aspirations.  U.S. policy towards Iran has not changed; as in the past, it works to advance longstanding goals.  It focuses now on the issues of Iran granting safe-haven to al-Qaida operatives and interfering in the establishment of a representative government in Iraq, along with the continuing effort to end Iran’s support for terrorism and for violent opposition to the peace process, and its pursuit of WMD, including nuclear weapons.  In addition, it calls on Iran to stop abusing the human rights of the Iranian people.  Unlike some countries, we do not accept the notion of differentiating between hardliners and reformers elements of the government.  We believe that the government as a whole must be held responsible for its actions.

President Bush has stated in no uncertain terms that the international community will not tolerate a nuclear-armed Iran.  Such a development would greatly destabilize an already volatile region and do grave harm to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the international nonproliferation regime.  We saw the international community come together last week at the IAEA Board of Governors to support a strong conclusion by the Chairwoman calling on Iran to address the concerns outlined in Director General ElBaradei’s interim report.  This report is based on the results to date of the work of inspectors on the ground in Iran, and it outlines in thorough detail Iran’s failures to meet its safeguards obligations, its lack of cooperation with IAEA inspectors, and the areas of unresolved concern that the IAEA will continue to investigate.  We expect to hear a further report from Dr. ElBaradei as soon as new information comes to light, including the results of environmental samples.   If such sampling results and other information support it, we would expect an eventual IAEA Board resolution finding Iran in noncompliance with its safeguards obligations.  As a result of our efforts to date, we have seen the EU and Russia adopt a firmer stance towards the growing threat of Iran’s covert nuclear weapons program.  We continue to press them and all countries to do all they can to counter Iran’s nuclear, chemical, biological, and missile programs. The strong G-8 statement on Iran’s nuclear program was a very positive development.

Iran is currently the most active state supporter of terrorism.  It is the primary political and financial backer of Hizballah, and the chief supplier of its military equipment and training.  It maintains forces as advisors to Hizballah in Lebanon.  Iran also provides financial and logistical support to many Palestinian terrorist groups, and as evidenced by the intercepted Karine-A shipment of January 2002, has been involved in attempts to smuggle weapons to the Palestinian Authority.  As we re-launch peace negotiations, we are watching closely to see if Iran will direct these groups to try to derail the Quartet’s ‘roadmap’ and are calling on the plan’s co-authors to make clear to Iran the unacceptability of its acting as a spoiler.

In addition to our longstanding concerns about Iranian involvement in terror, the presence of senior al-Qaida members in Iran is worrisome.  We are certain that some members of the al-Qaida advisory council are connected to the 12 May Riyadh attacks.  Some council members knew attacks in Saudi Arabia were imminent and they had been coordinating terrorist plots with top members of the Saudi Al-Qaida network, which carried out the attacks, since last fall.  While in the past we had seen instances where Iran turned over suspected al-Qaida operatives to other countries, in these cases, senior al-Qaida extremists appear to be finding safe-haven in Iran, likely with the support of some elements within the Iranian regime.  Iran claims to have a number of al-Qaida in detention, but to date, has not turned them over to other countries.  We have seen evidence that other countries have also strongly voiced to Iran the importance of taking unequivocal steps to shut down al-Qaida.  As National Security Advisor Rice said recently, we cannot tolerate al-Qaida activists going in and out of Iran. 

The overall human rights situation inside Iran has continued to deteriorate.  Pro-reform publications are regularly shut down, and journalists, editors and publishers are routinely jailed.  Fifteen political activists were recently given lengthy jail sentences.  A dissident academic was sentenced to death last fall for questioning Islamic rule, sparking days of demonstrations and domestic and international outrage that eventually forced the regime to grant a retrial.  While the regime has supposedly suspended (though not outlawed) the practice of stoning, we have heard a recent report of a beheading. 

We are pleased to have received Congressional authority to use Middle East Partnership Initiative funds as well as funds administered by the bureau of Democracy Rights and Labor to initiate pro-democracy and human rights programs for Iran.  We are now studying how to initiate programs in the most effective way. 

President Bush and other senior US officials have applauded the courage of the demonstrators who came out for over a week of protests this month calling for democracy and an end to clerical domination.  The Iranian government nonetheless has put down these protests.  The population seems to have lost faith in the Khatami government's ability to carry out meaningful reform, in both the political and economic spheres.  The Iranian people deserve a better future.  Their greatest concern is the economy, with high levels of inflation and corruption and a woeful lack of professional jobs, causing constant deterioration of their standard of living.

More recently, we have seen other disturbing indicators of negative Iranian behavior such as Iran’s meddling with the political process inside Iraq.  Iran is using money and armed proxies to try to promote those Shia groups that it sees as sympathetic to its interests.  Coalition Provisional Authority Administrator Bremer has publicly warned Iran that there would be consequences for such behavior.

LIBYA:  

Libya, another state sponsor of terrorism, has yet to fulfill its obligations under the relevant UN security Council Resolutions related to the bombing of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland in 1988.  These obligations include accepting responsibility for the actions of its officials and paying appropriate compensation.  It is past time that Libya fulfills these obligations.