DATE=9/14/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CONGRESS-IRAN-RUSSIA (L ONLY)
NUMBER=2-253867
BYLINE=PAULA WOLFSON
DATELINE=CAPITOL HILL
CONTENT=

VOICED AT: 


INTRO:  For the second year in a row, the U-S House of 
Representatives has passed a bill calling for 
sanctions on foreign entities that help Iran's missile 
program.  President Clinton vetoed similar legislation 
last year.  And as V-O-A's Paula Wolfson reports, the 
White House is promising more of the same (another 
veto)


TEXT:   Republicans and Democrats stood together to 
defy the President. 

            ///optional Lee tease act///

      This legislation will move us one step closer to 
      non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction 
      in the Middle East and throughout the world.


            /// end optional act///

California Democrat Barbara Lee joined the chorus of 
support for the measure.

            ///Lee act///

      This bill is a serious effort to tailor 
      sanctions to foreign companies that are the true 
      wrongdoers.


            ///end act///

The goal of the bill is to deter shipments of goods to 
Iran that could help Tehran's missile development 
program.  The main target of the legislation is 
Russia.

Last year, President Clinton vetoed a similar bill.  
He urged Congress not to challenge his decision, 
saying he wanted to press Moscow through diplomatic 
channels.

But the legislature is losing patience.  House 
International Relations Committee Chairman Benjamin 
Gilman (a New York Republican) says the time for 
diplomacy has passed.
  

            ///Gilman act///

      Clearly, the President overestimated his ability 
      to handle this problem diplomatically


            ///end act///

The new legislation gives the President the ability to 
waive sanctions.  But it also links Russia's non-
proliferation record to payments for Moscow's 
participation in the international space station.

(opt) The chairman of the House Science Committee, 
James Sensenbrenner (a Wisconsin Republican), pushed 
for the linkage.

            ///Sensenbrenner act///

      Using the space program as a non-proliferation 
      tool follows the path the White House laid out 
      in 1993, when it invited Russia into the 
      international space station partnership.  The 
      White House explicitly linked Russian 
      participation in the space station to its goal 
      of discouraging Russia from engaging in 
      proliferation activities.


            ///end act  (end opt)///

Meanwhile, House Republican leaders are stepping up 
their criticism of the Clinton administration's Russia 
policy.   Just minutes after the vote on the sanctions 
bill, House Majority leader Richard Armey met with 
reporters.

            ///optional Armey act///

      The Clinton administration's Russia policy is 
      the greatest foreign policy failure since 
      Vietnam.  We need to find out what went wrong 
      and where we can go from here.  It is time for 
      Congress to ask the question:  "Who lost 
      Russia?"


            ///end optional act///

Mr. Armey called for restrictions on International 
Monetary Fund loans to Russia.  And he promised a 
comprehensive set of hearings starting next week on 
Washington's economic dealings with Moscow.
(signed) 



NEB/PT





14-Sep-1999 15:12 PM LOC (14-Sep-1999 1912 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America
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