House Oversight Leaders Want More Info on Boeing's Aircraft Deal With Iran Air
Republicans on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee are requesting that the Office of Foreign Assets Control contact the committee before Dec. 24 to schedule a briefing on certain aspects of an agreement for Boeing to sell 80 jetliners to Iranian state-owned Iran Air for approximately $16.6 billion, according to a Dec. 15 letter to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew (here). Specifically, committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, and House Oversight and Government Reform National Security Subcommittee Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., requested that Treasury share information related to the OFAC licensing timeline, OFAC’s interagency coordination preceding approval, any sanctions-related contingency plans, any measures preventing illicit transfers of U.S. technology, and Treasury’s communication with the incoming Trump administration regarding progress on the Boeing deal. Once completed, the sale would be the largest business deal between the U.S. and Iran since the signing of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the letter says.
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The House of Representatives on Nov. 17 passed H.R. 5711, a bill that would prohibit the treasury secretary from authorizing a transaction by a public or private U.S. financial institution for the export or re-export of commercial passenger aircraft to Iran. The legislation sits in the Senate for consideration. President Barack Obama said he plans to veto the bill (see 1611170037).
In a separate letter to Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg (here), Chaffetz and DeSantis request that he also contact the committee before Dec. 24 to brief the committee. The chairmen want to know any information regarding contingency plans in case Iran Air engages in sanctionable non-nuclear activities, implications of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act on the deal and plans for staying compliant, measures that Boeing has taken to prevent exposure to litigation or claims against Iran by American victims of overseas terrorism with rights to Iranian assets, mechanisms to prevent illicit transfers of U.S. technology, whether Boeing informed the incoming Trump administration about the deal’s progress, and information related to potential termination of the contract.
Written by Brian Bradley