House again votes to bar sale of F-14 parts to Iran
The House voted for a second time Monday to ban the Pentagon from selling surplus F-14 fighter jet parts sought by Iran.
The House first approved the proposal last month as an add-on to military funding legislation. It backed it again Monday on a voice vote, this time as a free-standing bill.
The proposed ban, nicknamed the “Stop Arming Iran Act,” is expected to win Senate approval.
The White House did not immediately comment, but President Bush has called Iran part of an “axis of evil” and accuses it of funding terrorism and trying to develop nuclear weapons.
Buyers for Iran, China and other countries have exploited weaknesses in Pentagon surplus sale security to acquire sensitive military gear, including parts for F-14s, other aircraft and missiles.
In at least one case, surplus gear sold through a Pentagon auction made it to Iran, law enforcement officials say.
The Pentagon has taken steps to toughen surplus sale security after investigators last year obtained more than $1 million in sensitive surplus items, including a rocket launcher, by posing as defense contractors.
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