President Issues Executive Order Lifting Iraq Sanctions
Today President George W. Bush issued Executive Order 13350 formally lifting U.S. sanctions placed on Iraq in 1990. The Executive Order terminates the national emergency declared in Executive Order 12722 issued on August 2, 1990 following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and expanded in subsequent Executive Orders. While OFAC had issued general licenses authorizing certain transactions with Iraq in 2003, today's action removes much of the legal authority for the sanctions on Iraq.
In a statement sent to Congress, the President indicated that "I have determined that the removal of the regime of Saddam Hussein warrants the termination altogether of the national emergency declared in Executive Order 12722. This action is consistent with United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1483 and 1546, of May 22, 2003, and June 8, 2004, respectively, which substantially lifted the multilateral economic sanctions against Iraq."
Although the national emergency declared in Executive Order 12722 is terminated, the Executive Order continues to impose restrictions on dealing with blocked Iraqi property.
The Executive Order can be viewed at the following link: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/06jun20041800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2004/pdf/04-17636.pdf.
|posted by Douglas N. Jacobson| Permalink 
