WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate passed a 10-year extension of sanctions against Iran on Thursday, sending the measure to the White House for President Barack Obama to sign into law and delaying any potentially tougher actions until next year.

The measure passed by 99-0. It passed the House of Representatives nearly unanimously in November, and congressional aides said they expected Obama would sign it.

The ISA will expire on Dec. 31 if not renewed. The White House had not pushed for an extension, but had not raised serious objections.

Members of Congress and administration officials said the renewal of the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) would not violate the nuclear agreement with Iran reached last year.

“While we do not think that an extension of ISA is necessary, we do not believe that a clean extension would be a violation of the JCPOA (Iran deal),” a senior administration official said.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei said recently the extension would breach the agreement and threatened retaliation.

Democrats who backed the accord said they did not believe the ISA extension violated the pact because it continued a sanctions regime that was already in place. They said they had not heard such objections from U.S. partners.

“I have not heard strident objections from our key allies in the JCPOA,” Democratic Senator Chris Coons told reporters.

The agreement was signed by the United States, Britain, Russia, France, China, Germany and Iran.

Congress’ action did not address the fate of the nuclear pact, which was opposed by every Republican in the Senate and House. Lawmakers said it would make it easier for sanctions to be quickly reimposed if Iran violated the deal.

Republican U.S. President-elect Donald Trump railed against the pact as he campaigned for the White House. Many other members of his party, which also controls Congress, have called for the new administration to tear up the agreement.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker said the renewal ensures Trump can reimpose sanctions Obama lifted under the deal, in which Iran curbed its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

“Extending the Iran Sanctions Act ... ensures President-elect Trump and his administration have the tools necessary to push back against the regime’s hostile actions,” Corker said in a statement.

Trump becomes president on Jan. 20. Corker has been mentioned as a possible Trump secretary of state.

(Fixes typo in word “objections” in paragraph 8.)</s>Washington: US President Barack Obama is expected to sign US legislation extending sanctions against Iran for 10 years into law, the White House said on Friday.

"We believe the Iran Sanctions Act extension is not necessary, but we also believe it won't interfere with the Iran deal," spokesman Eric Schultz told reporters at a daily press briefing. "I would expect the president to sign this piece of legislation."

The US Senate had passed the 10-year extension of sanctions against Iran on Thursday, sending the measure to the White House for President Barack Obama to sign into law and delaying any potentially tougher actions until next year.

Responding to the US Senate vote, Iran had on Friday threatened to retaliate, saying the extension of Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) violated last year's deal with six major powers that curbed its nuclear program.

The ISA was first adopted in 1996 to punish investments in Iran's energy industry and deter its alleged pursuit of nuclear weapons. The extension was passed unanimously on Thursday.

US officials said the ISA's renewal would not infringe on the nuclear agreement, under which Iran agreed to limit its sensitive atomic activity in return for the lifting of international financial sanctions that harmed its oil-based economy.

But senior Iranian officials took odds with that view. Iran's nuclear energy chief, Ali Akbar Salehi, who played a central role in reaching the nuclear deal, described the extension as a "clear violation" if implemented.

"We are closely monitoring developments," state TV quoted Salehi as saying. "If they implement the ISA, Iran will take action accordingly."</s>U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to sign U.S. legislation extending sanctions against Iran for 10 years into law, the White House said on Friday.

"We believe the Iran Sanctions Act extension is not necessary, but we also believe it won't interfere with the Iran deal," spokesman Eric Schultz told reporters at a daily press briefing. "I would expect the president to sign this piece of legislation."</s>President Barack Obama will sign an extension of the Iran sanctions bill passed in Congress this week, White House spokesman Eric Schultz said Friday, although he called it "not necessary."

The White House has held the position that the administration has already provided enough sanctions on Iran, but said as the new measures will not interfere with the nuclear deal, Obama will sign it.

"We haven't been shy about taking action in response to those actions that includes strong robust sanctions, and that's not going to change," Schultz said.

Senators overwhelmingly approved Thursday a 10-year extension of tough economic sanctions against Iran they believe is needed to ensure Iran doesn't violate the terms of the recent international accord to curb that country's nuclear program.

The sanctions, which target Iran's energy, military and banking sectors, were first put in place in 1996 and have been extended and added to since then. The sanctions are actually not in effect at the moment since the Obama administration may waive them as long as Iran is in compliance. But legislators were still anxious to keep the sanctions -- which otherwise would expire at the end of the year -- in law so Iran understands how serious Congress is that the Islamic state not try again to develop nuclear weapons.</s>The Iran Sanctions Act bill includes penalties against Iran's banking sector, as well as its energy and defense industries (AFP Photo/Alex Wong)

Washington (AFP) - The US Senate on Thursday approved a 10-year extension of sanctions against Iran, a bipartisan measure that would have expired at year's end but now goes to President Barack Obama's desk.

The Iran Sanctions Act passed the Senate 99-0, after easily clearing the House of Representatives in November.

Obama is expected to sign the measure, a White House official said, adding that the administration does not believe the extension violates the nuclear agreement that was reached last year with Iran.

The legislation does not directly address the nuclear pact. But some say the restrictions in the bill go against the spirit of the agreement, under which Tehran curbed its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief from the United States and other nations.

Senate Democrats Dianne Feinstein and Tim Kaine, who both backed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Iran, said that while the president is currently waiving some sanctions as part of the agreement, "sanctions legislation must remain in place to allow an immediate 'snap-back' should Iran violate the JCPOA."

The extension signals congressional commitment to vigorously enforce the pact, and would "make clear that there will be immediate consequences should Iran break the terms of the agreement, including the re-imposition of sanctions," they said.

The bill includes penalties against Iran's banking sector, as well as its energy and defense industries.

Last month Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned that the Islamic republic would "react against" the new sanctions extension if it becomes law.

US President-elect Donald Trump heavily criticized the pact as he campaigned for the White House over the past year. Several fellow Republicans remain vehemently opposed to the nuclear deal and have called for its termination.

Extending the sanctions "ensures President-elect Trump and his administration have the tools necessary to push back against the regime's hostile actions," said Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman Bob Corker, who Trump has been considering as a possible pick for secretary of state.</s>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate is moving ahead on legislation that would renew a decades-old law that allows the United States to slap companies with economic sanctions for doing business with Iran.

A vote is scheduled Thursday on a 10-year extension of the Iran Sanctions Act. The bill’s backers say extending the law allows the U.S. to punish Tehran should the country fail to live up to the terms of the landmark nuclear deal.

If the Senate approves the House-passed bill, it will be sent to President Barack Obama, and he is expected to sign it into law. The House last month voted overwhelmingly, 419-1, to approve the extension. The act, first passed by Congress in 1996 and renewed several times since then, expires at the end of the year.

The White House had previously laid out a litmus test for the renewal, saying Obama wouldn’t sign it if it would undermine the nuclear accord. In exchange for Tehran rolling back its nuclear program, the U.S. and other world powers agreed to suspend wide-ranging oil and trade sanctions that had choked the Iranian economy.

But a senior Obama administration official said the sanctions renewal bill heading toward passage doesn’t violate the terms of the nuclear deal, which clears the way for Obama to sign it should the Senate pass it. Still, the Obama administration considers the renewal unnecessary given the president’s other authorities to sanction Iran, said the official, who wasn’t authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

But congressional Republicans and Democrats view the law as valuable leverage. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Thursday that preserving the sanctions is critical to blunt Iran’s “persistent efforts to expand its sphere of influence” throughout the Middle East. He also criticized the administration for allowing itself to be “held hostage” by Iran’s threats to withdraw from the nuclear agreement.

Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has said renewing the law is necessary if the U.S. wants to retain “a credible deterrent” of snapping sanctions back into place should Iran cheat on its obligations under the nuclear deal.

Congress approved the Iran Sanctions Act 20 years ago to block major foreign investment in Iran’s energy sector. The goal was to deny Tehran the ability to financially support terrorism and build nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities.

Associated Press writer Josh Lederman contributed to this report.</s>"The extension of sanctions by the U.S. congress is a violation of the deal. We will report it to Iran's committee, assigned for monitoring the implementation of the deal," according to a statement by Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi read on television.

Congress members and U.S. officials said the renewal of the Iran Sanctions Act, which was passed unanimously on Thursday, would not violate the nuclear agreement, under which Iran curbed its nuclear-power program in return for lifting sanctions.

Iran's top authority, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned in November that an extension would breach the deal and threatened retaliation.

"The American government is responsible of carrying out its international commitments ... The U.S. president has accepted to use its authority to prevent such measures," Ghasemi said, according to the state news agency IRNA.

The ISA will expire on Dec. 31 if not renewed. The White House had not pushed for an extension, but had not raised serious objections. Some congressional aides said they expected President Barack Obama to sign it.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump railed against the deal during his campaign for the White House.</s>WASHINGTON -- The Senate moved Thursday to renew a 20-year-old sanctions law that lawmakers said gives the United States the clout to punish Iran if it fails to live up to the terms of its nuclear deal.

Senators passed the bill 99-0, two weeks after the House also approved the legislation by an overwhelming 419-1 -- both veto-proof margins.

The bill to grant a 10-year extension of the Iran Sanctions Act will be sent to President Barack Obama, who planned to sign it.

The White House deemed the bill unnecessary but said it didn't violate the international accord intended to slow Iran's ability to make nuclear arms.

Seeking to address Iran's concerns, White House officials emphasized that the administration can and will waive all of the nuclear-related sanctions included in the renewal.

The officials weren't authorized to comment by name and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Lawmakers view the sanctions law, which is to expire at the end of the year, as an important tool for holding Iran accountable for any violations of the nuclear agreement and also as a bulwark against Tehran's aggression in the Middle East.

The law, first passed by Congress in 1996 and renewed several times since then, allows the U.S. to slap companies with economic sanctions for doing business with Iran.

In exchange for Iran rolling back its nuclear program, the U.S. and other world powers agreed to suspend wide-ranging oil, trade and financial sanctions that had choked the Iranian economy. The White House has been concerned that renewing the sanctions could give Iran an excuse to scuttle the deal by saying the U.S. had reneged on its commitments to sanctions relief.

Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said last month that the extension of the Iran Sanctions Act would threaten the multilateral nuclear pact passed last year.

He threatened that Iran would respond if the extension became law -- putting veto pressure on the Obama administration, which believes the president has sufficient authority to punish Iran without an extension of congressional sanctions.

White House officials said Thursday that Obama remained fully committed to implementing the deal and that the act's renewal would have no effect on the sanctions relief Iran is receiving.

The White House argued against extending the law by stressing that the president already has "substantial authorities" to sanction the Iranian regime for bad behavior -- such as a recent spate of ballistic missile tests that U.S. officials believe run counter to the spirit, if not the letter, of the Iranian nuclear deal.

"We retain substantial authority to impose additional sanctions if they are warranted," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Wednesday. He added, however, that if Obama does sign the bill, it would not be the first time "where the President has signed into law bills that Congress has passed that we're not sure are entirely necessary."

Congressional Republicans and Democrats view the law as valuable leverage and criticized the Obama administration for not being tougher with Iran.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Thursday that preserving the sanctions law is critical to blunt Iran's "persistent efforts to expand its sphere of influence" throughout the Middle East. He also criticized the administration for allowing itself to be "held hostage" by Iran's threats to withdraw from the nuclear agreement.

The Republican chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Bob Corker of Tennessee, said renewing the law will ensure that President-elect Donald Trump can reinstate sanctions that the Obama administration lifted to implement the Iran nuclear deal.

Corker, who has been mentioned as a candidate to be Trump's secretary of state, said he is in favor of appointing a U.S. official who would "radically enforce" the nuclear agreement. He also held out the possibility that the deal could be renegotiated once Obama leaves office.

"My guess is, if cooperation doesn't ensue relative to really enforcing this, significant changes will occur very rapidly," Corker said.

However, several world powers signed on to the deal and have showed no signs of backing away.

Congress approved the Iran Sanctions Act 20 years ago to block major foreign investment in Iran's energy sector. The goal was to deny Tehran the ability to financially support terrorism, and build nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities.

Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has argued that keeping the law on the books is necessary if the U.S. wants to retain "a credible deterrent" of putting sanctions back into place should Iran cheat on its obligations under the nuclear agreement.

The future of the nuclear agreement with Iran is one of the major looming foreign-policy questions facing the Trump administration. During the campaign, Trump pledged to dismantle the agreement, which he described as "the stupidest deal of all time" in the last presidential debate.

Some hope that Trump will change course. In an interview published Wednesday, departing director of the CIA John Brennan said that ending the nuclear agreement would be "disastrous" and "the height of folly."

Information for this article was contributed by Richard Lardner, Josh Lederman and Mary Clare Jalonick of The Associated Press; by Karoun Demirjian of The Washington Post; and by Thomas Kaplan and Julie Hirschfeld Davis of The New York Times.</s>FILE - In this Nov. 23, 2014 file-pool photo, Secretary of State John Kerry talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Vienna, Austria. Kerry plans to see Zarif this week amid Iranian complaints that it's not getting the sanctions relief it deserves under last year's landmark nuclear deal. (AP Photo/Ronald Zak, File-Pool)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate moved decisively Thursday to renew a decades-old sanctions law that lawmakers said gives the United States the clout to punish Iran should it fail to live up to the terms of the landmark nuclear deal.

Senators passed the bill unanimously, 99-0, two weeks after the House also approved the legislation by an overwhelming margin of 419-1.

The bill to grant a 10-year extension of the Iran Sanctions Act will be sent to President Barack Obama, who planned to sign it.

The White House deemed the bill unnecessary but said it didn't violate the international accord meant to slow Iran's ability to make nuclear arms. Seeking to address Iran's concerns, White House officials emphasized that the administration can and will waive all the nuclear-related sanctions included in the renewal.

The officials weren't authorized to comment by name and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Lawmakers view the sanctions law, which is set to expire at the end of the year, as an important tool for holding Iran accountable for any violations of the nuclear agreement and also as a bulwark against Tehran's aggression in the Middle East. The law, first passed by Congress in 1996 and renewed several times since then, allows the U.S. to slap companies with economic sanctions for doing business with Iran.

In exchange for Tehran rolling back its nuclear program, the U.S. and other world powers agreed to suspend wide-ranging oil, trade and financial sanctions that had choked the Iranian economy. The White House has been concerned that renewing the sanctions could give Iran an excuse to scuttle the deal by saying the U.S. had reneged on its commitments to sanctions relief.

Last month, after the House passed the renewal, Iran's top leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Iran would be forced to react if the sanctions were renewed. White House officials said Thursday that Obama remained fully committed to implementing the deal and that the renewal would have no effect at all on the sanctions relief Iran is receiving.

But congressional Republicans and Democrats view the law as valuable leverage and criticized the Obama administration for not being tougher with Iran. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Thursday that preserving the sanctions law is critical to blunt Iran's "persistent efforts to expand its sphere of influence" throughout the Middle East. He also criticized the administration for allowing itself to be "held hostage" by Iran's threats to withdraw from the nuclear agreement.

The Republican chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Bob Corker of Tennessee, said renewing the law will ensure President-elect Donald Trump can reinstate sanctions the Obama administration lifted to implement the Iran nuclear deal.

Corker, who has been mentioned as a candidate to be Trump's secretary of state, said he is in favor of appointing a U.S. official who would "radically enforce" the nuclear agreement. He also held out the possibility the deal could be renegotiated once Obama leaves office.

"My guess is, if cooperation doesn't ensue relative to really enforcing this, significant changes will occur very rapidly," Corker said.

However, several world powers signed onto to the deal and have showed no signs of backing away.

Congress approved the Iran Sanctions Act 20 years ago to block major foreign investment in Iran's energy sector. The goal was to deny Tehran the ability to financially support terrorism and build nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities.

Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has argued that keeping the law on the books is necessary if the U.S. wants to retain "a credible deterrent" of putting sanctions back into place should Iran cheat on its obligations under the nuclear agreement.

Associated Press writers Josh Lederman and Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.</s>TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s foreign minister condemned the U.S. Senate’s extension of a piece of anti-Iran legislation, state TV reported Saturday.

On Thursday the Senate voted to extend the Iran Sanctions Act by 10 years. The measure will now be sent to outgoing President Barack Obama to sign. Iran’s state television quoted Mohammad Javad Zarif as saying that the extension “shows the lack of credibility of the U.S. government.”

On Friday, Bahram Ghasemi, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, issued a statement condemning the extension of sanctions against Iran and said the act is a clear violation of the landmark nuclear deal reached between Iran and the world powers last year.

Ghasemi said, “The U.S. president has agreed within the framework of the nuclear deal that he would use his authority to prevent the legislation and enforcement of any measures in violation of the deal, such as the recent act by the Congress.”

The nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers lifted a variety of international sanctions in exchange for limitations on the Iranian nuclear program. However the U.S. still maintains its own separate set of sanctions, which are set to expire Dec. 31 if they are not extended.

Ali Akbar Salehi, chief of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, said on Friday that Iran will carefully consider how to respond. “We will definitely make no emotional decisions but will make a decision based on prudence, vigilance and wisdom,” he said.

Earlier in November, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters, warned that, “Definitely, the Islamic Republic of Iran will react” if the U.S. sanctions were renewed.
The United States Senate votes 99–0 in favor of a ten-year extension of the Iran Sanctions Act, the measure will now be sent to President Barack Obama to sign into law. The act was due to expire on December 31, 2016, if not renewed.