Leaders of the Conference of Presidents today noted the serious concerns raised by former Secretary of State George Schultz and forty-one other former top national security officials in a letter to airplane manufacturers Airbus and Boeing in response to the announced plans by both companies to sell aircraft to Iran.
In a statement issued today, Conference Chairman Stephen M. Greenberg and Executive Vice Chairman/CEO Malcolm Hoenlein said,
“We welcome the analysis from an esteemed group of former top national security officials with decades of experience in defense, intelligence and national security policy-making warning of the dangers inherent in the decisions of Airbus and Boeing to sell aircraft to Iran.
These seasoned national security experts directly and forcefully detailed for both companies, and the American people, the inherent business risks posed by Iran’s financial and banking sectors and the potential devastating harm that could be done with hundreds of new state-of-the-art aircraft available to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps to speed arms and supplies to the Syrian regime and terror groups operating in the region.
It is especially troubling given the recent threats from Ayatollah Khameini and other Iranian leaders against the U.S. and our allies in the Middle East. Their provocative actions throughout the region and around the world would be significantly bolstered by the enhanced capabilities a new fleet of aircraft would provide.
We hope Airbus and Boeing will seriously consider the points made in the letter and reassess their decisions to move forward with the sales at this time.”
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