[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3235 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 3235
To require a strategy to counter the role of the People's Republic of
China in evasion of sanctions imposed by the United States with respect
to Iran, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
November 7, 2023
Mr. Risch (for himself and Mr. Rubio) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require a strategy to counter the role of the People's Republic of
China in evasion of sanctions imposed by the United States with respect
to Iran, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``End Iranian Terrorism Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the Islamic Republic of Iran has long provided hundreds
of millions of dollars in material support to Hamas and other
terrorist groups, such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad, that
directly threaten Israel;
(2) Iran poses a threat to regional and global security and
has earned approximately $80,000,000,000 in oil revenues since
2021;
(3) the People's Republic of China, seeking to secure
reliable sources of Middle Eastern energy, has purchased
roughly $47,000,000,000 in Iranian petroleum products since
2021 and is undercutting the enforcement of sanctions imposed
by the United States with respect to Iran;
(4) illicit purchases of Iranian petroleum products by the
People's Republic of China and other countries fund the Iranian
regime's suppression of human rights in Iran, provide valuable
resources for Iran's terrorist proxies, and provide additional
resources for support by Iran for the Russian Federation in its
unprovoked war in Ukraine, contrary to United States policy;
(5) lack of sanctions and sanctions enforcement directly
undercuts United States policy objectives in the Indo-Pacific
region, Europe, the Middle East, and beyond;
(6) increasing encroachment by the People's Republic of
China in the Middle East and North Africa, include involvement
of the People's Republic of China in illicit oil trade, runs
counter to the national security interests of the United
States; and
(7) the United States should immediately enforce existing
sanctions, including sanctions provided for in Executive Order
13846 (50 U.S.C. 1701 note; relating to reimposing certain
sanctions with respect to Iran), and expand sanctions
designations to include persons that store Iranian oil, ship-
to-ship oil transfer operators, ports and port operators,
refineries and refinery operators, and other individuals and
entities, particularly in the People's Republic of China,
dealing in Iranian-origin oil and petrochemicals.
SEC. 3. APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DEFINED.
In this Act, the term ``appropriate congressional committees''
means--
(1) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; and
(2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on
Financial Services of the House of Representatives.
SEC. 4. STRATEGY TO COUNTER ROLE OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA IN
EVASION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO IRAN.
(a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the
heads of other appropriate Federal agencies, shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees a written strategy, and provide to
those committees an accompanying briefing, on the role of the People's
Republic of China in evasion of sanctions imposed by the United States
with respect to Iranian-origin petroleum products that includes an
assessment of options--
(1) to strengthen the enforcement of such sanctions; and
(2) to expand sanctions designations targeting the
involvement of the People's Republic of China in the
production, transportation, storage, refining, and sale of
Iranian-origin petroleum products.
(b) Elements.--The strategy required by subsection (a) shall
include--
(1) a description of the use of sanctions in effect before
the date of the enactment of this Act to target individuals and
entities of the People's Republic of China that are directly or
indirectly associated with smuggling of Iranian-origin
petroleum products;
(2) an assessment of--
(A) the People's Republic of China's petroleum
refining capabilities;
(B) which of the People's Republic of China's
refineries are at high risk of processing Iranian-
origin petroleum products and why;
(C) Iranian-owned entities operating in the
People's Republic of China and involved in petroleum
refining supply chains;
(D) the People's Republic of China's role in global
petroleum refining supply chains;
(E) how the People's Republic of China leverages
its role in global petroleum supply chains to achieve
political objectives;
(F) the People's Republic of China's petroleum
importing and exporting partners;
(G) what percent of the People's Republic of
China's energy consumption is linked to illegally
imported Iranian-origin petroleum products;
(H) the amount of money the People's Republic of
China saves by illegally importing discounted Iranian-
origin petroleum products rather than paying market
price;
(I) what level of influence the Chinese Communist
Party holds over non-state, semi-independent ``teapot''
refineries; and
(J) the challenges limiting the ability of the
United States to impose or enforce sanctions with
respect to such refineries, including--
(i) Lawen Namu Petroleum Trading Company;
(ii) Qihang Energy; and
(iii) Shangang Guomao;
(3) a detailed plan for--
(A) monitoring the maritime domain for smuggling of
Iranian-origin petroleum products in violation of
sanctions imposed by the United States, including
through--
(i) automatic identification system
monitoring;
(ii) satellite imagery;
(iii) vessel comparison and tanker
classification;
(iv) receiving tips from operators; and
(v) creating a database of reported
potential sanctions violations;
(B) identifying the individuals, entities, and
vessels responsible for such smuggling, including--
(i) vessels--
(I) operated by the National
Iranian Tanker Company or any other
Chinese or Iranian entity subject to
sanctions imposed by the United States;
(II) transporting petrochemicals
subject to sanctions;
(III) conducting ship-to-ship
transfers of such petrochemicals;
(IV) with deactivated automatic
identification systems; or
(V) that engage in ``flag hopping''
by changing national registries;
(ii) individuals or entities--
(I) storing petrochemicals subject
to sanctions; or
(II) refining or otherwise
processing such petrochemicals; and
(iii) through the use of port entry and
docking permission of vessels subject to
sanctions;
(C) assessing the viability of seizing targets
identified as belonging to entities smuggling Iranian-
origin petroleum products in violation of sanctions
imposed by the United States, including--
(i) location;
(ii) origin and destination;
(iii) seaworthiness; and
(iv) asset value;
(D) seizing, prosecuting, and, if appropriate,
liquidating viable targets identified as belonging to
entities involved in such smuggling;
(E) deterring individuals and entities from
violating sanctions by educating and engaging--
(i) insurance providers;
(ii) parent companies; and
(iii) vessel operators;
(F) collaborating with allies and partners of the
United States engaged in the Arabian Peninsula,
including through standing or new maritime task forces,
to build sanctions enforcement capacity through
assistance and training to defense and law enforcement
services; and
(G) using public communications and global
diplomatic engagements to highlight the role of
petroleum product smuggling in supporting Iran's human
rights abuses and destabilizing terrorism activities;
and
(4) an assessment of--
(A) the total number of vessels smuggling Iranian-
origin petroleum products;
(B) the total number of vessels smuggling such
petroleum products destined for the People's Republic
of China;
(C) the number of vessels smuggling such petroleum
products specifically from the Islamic Revolutionary
Guard Corps;
(D) the most strategic locations for intercepting
smuggled Iranian-origin petroleum products destined for
the People's Republic of China;
(E) interference from the People's Republic of
China in attempts by the United States to investigate
or enforce sanctions on Iranian petroleum product
exports;
(F) the effectiveness of the use of sanctions with
respect to insurers of entities that own or operate
vessels involved in smuggling Iranian-origin petroleum
products;
(G) the distinction between the total number of
suspected violations of sanctions related to smuggling
of Iranian-origin petroleum products and the number of
vessels legally viable to seize and prosecute in
litigation, if any, and an accompanying explanation for
each;
(H) the personnel and resources needed to enforce
sanctions with respect to Iranian-origin petroleum
products; and
(I) the impact of smuggled Iranian-origin petroleum
products on global energy markets.
(c) Form.--The strategy required by subsection (a) shall be
submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified index.
SEC. 5. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the President shall--
(1) identify each foreign entity, including any member of
the Chinese Communist Party or an entity organized under the
laws of the People's Republic of China or otherwise subject to
the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China, that the
President determines meets the criteria for the imposition of
sanctions under--
(A) the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-
172;50 U.S.C. 1701 note);
(B) the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions,
Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (22 U.S.C.
8501 et seq.);
(C) section 1245 of the National Defense
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (22 U.S.C.
8513a);
(D) the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human
Rights Act of 2012 (22 U.S.C. 8701 et seq.);
(E) the Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act
of 2012 (22 U.S.C. 8801 et seq.);
(F) title I of the Countering America's Adversaries
Through Sanctions Act (22 U.S.C. 9401 et seq.);
(G) any Executive order imposing sanctions with
respect to Iran issued under the authority provided by
the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50
U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); or
(H) any other provision of law imposing sanctions
with respect to Iran; and
(2) impose sanctions applicable under existing law with
respect to each such entity.
(b) Report Required.--Not later than 30 days after the imposition
of sanctions under subsection (a) with respect to a foreign entity, the
President shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a
report on the sanctions imposed.
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