US Congress Eying New Measures Against Iran’s Missile Program

The US Congress is mulling over new punitive measures against a wide range of activities supporting Iran’s missile and drone programs.

The new measures are in the framework of a bill, titled Fight CRIME Act, introduced on Tuesday by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Ranking Member Gregory W. Meeks (D-NY), along with Subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia Chairman Joe Wilson (R-SC) and Ranking Member Dean Phillips (D-MN).

The bipartisan bill would impose sanctions on activities related to the Islamic Republic’s missile and drone programs ahead of the October 2023 expiration of the UN missile ban on Iran.

"Even with the UN restrictions in place, Iran's missiles and drones are targeting US troops, allies, and partners across the Middle East and increasingly fueling Vladimir Putin's illegal war of aggression against Ukraine,” said the lawmakers. “Without urgent action, Iran's missiles and drones could wreak even greater havoc around the globe come October.”

The new bill came as Tehran has continued its malign activities in the Middle Eastr and and talks to revivie the 2015 nuclear deal have failed despite long negotiations in 2021 and 2022.

"We are proud to introduce the Fight CRIME Act to constrain Iran's arsenal, deter malign actors from supporting Iran and its proxies, and keep these dangerous weapons from proliferating onto new battlefields, regardless of whether UN restrictions remain in place," read a statement by the congresspeople who introduced the bill.

The measure would impose mandatory property blocking and visa sanctions on anyone involved in the supply, sale, or transfer of, or support for, Iran’s missiles and drones including by acquiring or transferring Iranian missiles and drones; providing Iran or its proxies with items that may contribute to the development of missiles or drones; participating in joint missile or drone development with Iran or its proxies; and importing or exporting any restricted missile or drone-related materiel to or from Iran.

The new act also requires the Biden administration to submit a report on Iranian missiles and drones to Congress, specifically outlining a strategy to prevent missile and drone-related restrictions under Annex B to UNSCR 2231 from lapsing in October; and an assessment of the impact a lapse would have on Iran’s malign activities and potential financial benefits to the regime.

The measure also calls for a description of the role sanctioned Iranian airlines are playing in the regime’s weapons proliferation, and a list of violators of UN missile and drone-related restrictions on Iran and international efforts to hold them to account.

The Islamic Republic has tried for a long time to keep its missile program apart from the US and global sanctions on its nuclear program, but recently – particularly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine – the threats of its missile program have become more apparent to the West. Iran keeps supplying drones for the Russian forces as well as its proxies across the region, but insists that the missile program is meant for deterrence.

However, the Islamic Republic’s state media keep bragging about developing missiles and drones and distributing them among allies throughout the Middle East.

In an article in December, media affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards boasted about its “integrated missile network” and how it has armed the axis of “resistance” in the Middle East, a term which refers to a network of pro-Iranian proxies and Tehran-backed militias across the region, particularly Hezbollah, the Palestinian groups and Houthis in Yemen.

In February, France said that there must be a stronger "international response" to the threat posed by Iran's ballistic missiles program, with French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna conveying her country’s position to her US counterpart Antony Blinken. "The minister mentioned Iran's destabilizing activities and the increasing threat posed by the increase of its ballistic missiles arsenal, the proliferation of missiles including towards non-state actors (...) and the need to strengthen the international response to this threat," said the ministry, regarding Colonna's talks with Blinken.