AJC Welcomes U.S. Action Against Russian Companies Doing Military-Related Business With Iran

American Jewish Committee
Thursday, 16 July 1998

"The Iranian Missile Threat Is Real; Our Response Must Be Commensurate To The Threat"

The following statement was issued today by David A. Harris, Executive Director of the American Jewish Committee, regarding the announcement that the United States will impose sanctions on nine Russian companies that have assisted Iran in developing its missile program:

"This is a welcome and necessary, if somewhat overdue, step to underscore America's seriousness of purpose. The persistent Russian cooperation with Iran in the development of ballistic missiles has been a matter of utmost concern to us.

"Not only does the Iranian weapons program pose an existential threat to the State of Israel, but also, as a bipartisan commission led by former Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld pointed out in its report issued yesterday, there is a long term threat to the United States of precisely such missiles coming from Iran and other rogue states.

"The Russian government's announcement that it will investigate these companies' trades with Iran is also welcome, but will require very careful monitoring to ensure that all necessary steps are in fact taken to penalize those Russian companies found to be in violation of the new export control laws.

"Yesterday's announcement does begin to point us in the right direction. Whether it goes far enough, however, remains to be seen. The Iranian missile threat is real; our response must be commensurate to the threat.

"In our frequent meetings with Foreign Ministers from literally dozens of nations, AJC has put the issue of relations with Iran and its growing military threat to regional and global stability high on the agenda."

In addition, AJC has held seminars and disseminated major reports on Iran, including "Business As Usual? Western Policy Options Toward Iran," "Chinese Arms and Technology Transfers to Iran: Implications for the United States, Israel, and the Middle East," "Silkworms and Summitry: Chinese Arms Exports to Iran and U.S. - China Relations," and "The Russian Connection: Russia, Iran, and the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction."

For more information, or to contact American Jewish Committee, see their website at: www.ajc.org