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Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen should allow Elon Musk’s satellite internet service Starlink to operate in heavily sanctioned Iran as the country faces widespread protests, a bipartisan group of lawmakers said.
Musk “recently stated that SpaceX will seek a license to provide Iran with its satellite-based Starlink internet service,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter to Yellen. “If such a permit application is submitted, we urge you to approve it immediately.” Musk called for exemptions in a tweet on Monday.
The letter was spearheaded by Rep. Claudia Tenney, Republican of New York, and Rep. Tom Malinowski, Democrat of New Jersey, and signed by a number of other lawmakers. They also asked the Treasury Department to clarify its policy of facilitating access to communications in sanctioned countries and urged the department to issue any necessary “letters of condolence” to entities that might seek to provide communications services under a previously issued general license.
“Congress calls on the Treasury Department to do everything in its power to help the Iranian people stay connected to the Internet,” Tenney said in a statement. “We need to remove any bureaucratic red tape and get the job done.”
Demonstrations in Iran began on Friday with the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who fell into a coma after Tehran’s so-called ethics police arrested her for allegedly violating Islamic dress codes. Since then, dozens of towns including the capital Tehran and Karaj, Shiraz, Tabriz, Kerman, Kish, Yazd, Neshapur, Isfahan and Mashhad There were protests.
“Iranians took to the streets to demand justice for Massa,” Malinowski said. “We need to do our part to make sure the Iranians stay connected to the outside world.”
Rep. Michael McCall, the top Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a statement that the United States must “do everything we can” to help “the brave Iranians who protest injustice.”
A Treasury spokesman said the ministry already allows certain internet communications-related services, including those that use satellite terminals like Starlink, and welcomed Iran’s application for a specific license related to internet freedom.
Even if the services they provide are expressly authorized by the Treasury Department, companies sometimes fear they are at risk of violating U.S. sanctions, said Daniel Tannebaum, a partner at Oliver Wyman. This is especially true in heavily sanctioned jurisdictions such as Iran.
“It becomes a business decision based on risk appetite in the space,” Tannebaum said in an interview. “You need to trust that you have the right controls in place to maintain immunity.”
The Treasury Department has begun hiring a “chief sanctions economist” who officials say will help ease such concerns.
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