Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) introduced a bipartisan bill on Tuesday to speed up the process by which confiscated Iranian weapons are transferred to U.S. partners and allies.
“Iran, the world’s largest state-sponsor of terror, continues to arm terror proxies that threaten American troops, our bases and our allies,” the legislator stated.
The bill would ensure “that when these illegal weapons are intercepted, they help our allies who need them, instead of our adversaries,” Gottheimer said.
The bill is sponsored in the U.S. Senate by Sens. Ted Budd (R-N.C.) and Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) and co-sponsored in the U.S. House of Representatives by Reps. Jefferson Shreve (R-Ind.), Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) and Rich McCormick (R-Ga.).
Between May 2021 and January 2023, the U.S. Navy intercepted arms shipments from Iran to Yemen that included more than 9,000 rifles, 284 machine guns, around 194 rocket launchers, more than 70 anti-tank guided missiles and more than 700,000 rounds of ammunition, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Under current law, the U.S. Central Command must go through a review process that could last a year before it can release those weapons. The bill would treat those confiscated arms like any other weapons in U.S. inventories, making it easier to transfer them.
“This common sense legislation ensures seized weapons don’t sit idle—they go to strengthen the defenses of our allies,” Shreve said. “The current drawn-out process undermines U.S. interests.”
“By cutting red tape, this bill keeps dangerous weapons out of adversaries’ hands and puts them where they belong: protecting America,” he said.
