Amid Protests, U.S. May Drop Sale of Jetliners to Iran
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WASHINGTON — The Clinton Administration may drop plans to permit the sale of $900 million worth of jetliners to Iran in response to angry protests from members of Congress, who charged in a letter Wednesday that the White House was about to repeat the Iraq policies of the Ronald Reagan and George Bush administrations.
More than 140 Congress members urged Clinton to reject the sale of 16 Boeing 737-400 jetliners to Iran on grounds that the planes constitute “dual-use” technology--that is, they have potential military applications for a country branded by Secretary of State Warren Christopher as an “international outlaw” because it supported terrorism.
“It is hypocritical to even consider the sale of these aircraft, which have the capacity for dual use, when we know that Iran poses a substantial danger to worldwide security,” the letter said.
Lawmakers cited the sale of dual-use technology that Iraq used in its nuclear and chemical weapons programs before the Gulf War.
Rep. Peter Deutsch (D-Fla.), the freshman lawmaker who organized the congressional protest, later told reporters that the Administration is “rethinking” the proposed sale and may move to block it.
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