WASHINGTON – U.S. Chris Coons (D-Del.), Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Michael Bennet (D-Col.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) today released a letter they sent last week to President Obama in which they reiterated their calls for enforcement of sanctions on Iran’s ballistic missile program. Before Implementation Day, Iran was barred under U.N. Security Council Resolution 1929 from “any activity related to ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons,” and today the Treasury Department enforced sanctions against 11 entities and individuals supporting Iran’s missile program.

The Senators wrote: “Iran's ballistic missile development, state sponsorship of terrorism, and human rights violations all remain clearly sanctionable activities by the United States and our allies under UNSCR 1929, and failure to impose sanctions could encourage Tehran to believe it can violate its international agreements with impunity. Now is the time to act. Enhanced sanctions to ‎stop Iran's missile program should be imposed immediately – in fact, are overdue – and delaying them further makes them far less effective.”

Full text of the Senators’ letter to President Obama is below, and can be downloaded in PDF format here. 

Dear Mr. President:

We write to reiterate our request that you act immediately to deter Iran's ongoing ballistic missile program and condemn Iran for ignoring its international obligations under U.N. Security Council Resolution 1929, which bars Iran from “any activity related to ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons.” We are deeply disturbed by the lack of enforcement, including delaying sanctions on those entities and individuals already identified by the Department of the Treasury as supporting Iran’s ballistic missile program. 

Iran's ballistic missile development, state sponsorship of terrorism, and human rights violations all remain clearly sanctionable activities by the United States and our allies under UNSCR 1929, and failure to impose sanctions could encourage Tehran to believe it can violate its international agreements with impunity. Now is the time to act.

Enhanced sanctions to ‎stop Iran's missile program should be imposed immediately – in fact, are overdue – and delaying them further makes them far less effective. These sanctions work by both barring those sanctioned from continued business with U.S. companies and by freezing their assets. Identifying, but not immediately following through on sanctioning key companies and associated individuals financing and providing ballistic missile components to Iran is a missed opportunity to hold Iran accountable.

Furthermore, delaying these sanctions is contrary to our unambiguous and enduring policy under the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996 to “deny Iran the ability to support acts of international terrorism and to fund the development and acquisition of weapons of mass destruction and the means to deliver them.” Following Iran's multiple missile test violations, threats of escalation, and provocations in the Strait of Hormuz, it remains critical that you consistently adhere to your declared policy not only of strictly enforcing the JCPOA, but of acting vigorously to deter Iran from further ballistic missile testing and development.

Just as enforcement of comprehensive sanctions related to Iran’s nuclear program forced Iran to negotiate over its nuclear program, so too must enforcement of missile-related sanctions be pursued to limit the threat of Iran’s ballistic missiles. We look forward to working with you to hold Iran accountable, ensure future compliance, and fortify our national security.

Sincerely,