IV 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. CON. RES. 362 

Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the threat posed to international 

peace, stability in the Middle East, and the vital national security interests of the United States by Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and 

regional hegemony, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 22, 2008 

Mr. ACKERMAN (for himself and Mr. PENCE) submitted the following 

concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the threat posed 

to international peace, stability in the Middle East, and 

the vital national security interests of the United States 

by Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and regional hegemony, and for other purposes. 

Whereas Iran is a party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), has foresworn the acquisition of nuclear weapons by ratification of the NPT, 

and is legally bound to declare and place all its nuclear 

activity under constant monitoring by the International 

Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); 

Whereas for nearly 20 years, in clear contravention of its explicit obligations under the NPT, Iran operated a covert 


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•HCON 362 IH 

nuclear program until it was revealed by an Iranian opposition group in 2002; 

Whereas the IAEA has confirmed such illicit covert nuclear 

activities as the importation of uranium hexafluoride, 

construction of a uranium enrichment facility, experimentation with plutonium, importation of centrifuge technology, construction of centrifuges, and importation of 

designs to convert highly enriched uranium gas into 

metal and shape it into the core of a nuclear weapon; 

Whereas Iran continues to expand the number of centrifuges 

at its enrichment facility, as made evident by its announced intention to begin installation of 6,000 advanced 

centrifuges to enrich uranium, in defiance of binding 

United Nations Security Council resolutions demanding 

Iran suspend enrichment activities; 

Whereas the November 2007 National Intelligence Estimate 

reported that Iran was secretly working on the design 

and manufacture of a nuclear warhead until at least 

2003, but that Iran could have enough highly enriched 

uranium for a nuclear weapon as soon as late 2009; 

Whereas an Iranian nuclear weapons capability would pose a 

grave threat to international peace and security by fundamentally altering and destabilizing the strategic balance in the Middle East, and severely undermining the 

global nonproliferation regime; 

Whereas Iran’s overt sponsorship of several terrorist groups, 

including Hamas and Hezbollah, and its close ties to 

Syria raise the possibility that Iran would share its nuclear materials and technology with others; 

Whereas Iran continues to develop ballistic missile technology 

and is pursuing the capability to field intercontinental 


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•HCON 362 IH 

ballistic missiles, a delivery system suited almost exclusively to nuclear weapons payloads; 

Whereas Iranian leaders have repeatedly called for the destruction of Israel, a major non-North Atlantic Treaty 

Organization ally, and a member of the United Nations; 

Whereas the United States, Russia, China, France, the 

United Kingdom, and Germany have offered, and continue to offer, to negotiate a significant package of economic, diplomatic, and security incentives if Iran complies with the United Nations Security Council’s resolutions demanding that Iran suspend uranium enrichment; 

Whereas Iran has consistently refused such offers; 

Whereas as a result of Iran’s failure to comply with the mandates of the United Nations Security Council, taken 

under Chapter VII of the United Nations’ Charter, the 

international community has imposed limited sanctions 

over the past 2 years that have begun to have an impact 

on the Iranian economy; 

Whereas Iran’s rapid development of its nuclear capabilities 

is outpacing the slow ratcheting up of economic and diplomatic sanctions; 

Whereas Iran has used its banking system, including the 

Central Bank of Iran, to support its proliferation efforts 

and its assistance to terrorist groups, leading the Department of Treasury to designate 4 large Iranian banks 

proliferators and supporters of terrorism; 

Whereas Iran’s support for Hezbollah has enabled that group 

to wage war against the Government and people of Lebanon, leading to its political domination of that country; 

Whereas Iran’s support for Hamas has enabled it to illegally 

seize control of Gaza from the Palestinian Authority, and 


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•HCON 362 IH 

to continuously bombard Israeli civilians with rockets and 

mortars; 

Whereas Iran continues to provide training, weapons, and financial assistance to Shi’a militants inside of Iraq and 

antigovernment warlords in Afghanistan; 

Whereas those Shi’a militant groups and Afghan warlords 

use Iranian training, weapons, and financing to attack 

American and allied forces trying to support the legitimate Governments of Iraq and Afghanistan; 

Whereas Iran is further destabilizing the Middle East by underwriting a massive rearmament campaign by Syria; 

Whereas through these efforts, Iran seeks to establish regional hegemony, threatens longstanding friends and allies of the United States in the Middle East, and endangers vital American national security interests; and 

Whereas nothing in this resolution shall be construed as an 

authorization of the use of force against Iran: Now, 

therefore, be it 

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 

2 concurring), That Congress— 

3 (1) declares that preventing Iran from acquir4 ing a nuclear weapons capability, through all appro5 priate economic, political, and diplomatic means, is 

6 vital to the national security interests of the United 

7 States and must be dealt with urgently; 

8 (2) urges the President, in the strongest of 

9 terms, to immediately use his existing authority to 

10 impose sanctions on— 


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•HCON 362 IH 

1 (A) the Central Bank of Iran and any 

2 other Iranian bank engaged in proliferation ac3 tivities or the support of terrorist groups; 

4 (B) international banks which continue to 

5 conduct financial transactions with proscribed 

6 Iranian banks; 

7 (C) energy companies that have invested 

8 $20,000,000 or more in the Iranian petroleum 

9 or natural gas sector in any given year since 

10 the enactment of the Iran Sanctions Act of 

11 1996; and 

12 (D) all companies which continue to do 

13 business with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary 

14 Guard Corps; 

15 (3) demands that the President initiate an 

16 international effort to immediately and dramatically 

17 increase the economic, political, and diplomatic pres18 sure on Iran to verifiably suspend its nuclear enrich19 ment activities by, inter alia, prohibiting the export 

20 to Iran of all refined petroleum products; imposing 

21 stringent inspection requirements on all persons, ve22 hicles, ships, planes, trains, and cargo entering or 

23 departing Iran; and prohibiting the international 

24 movement of all Iranian officials not involved in neVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:22 May 24, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HC362.IH HC362

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1 gotiating the suspension of Iran’s nuclear program; 

2 and 

3 (4) urges the President to lead a sustained, se4 rious, and forceful effort at regional diplomacy to 

5 support the legitimate governments in the region 

6 against Iranian efforts to destabilize them, to reas7 sure our friends and allies that the United States 

8 supports them in their resistance to Iranian efforts 

9 at hegemony, and to make clear to the Government 

10 of Iran that the United States will protect America’s 

11 vital national security interests in the Middle East. 

Æ 


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