Grand Jury Steps Up Inquiry Into Possible Halliburton Ties to Iran

[papau]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-halliburton21jul21.story

Grand Jury Steps Up Inquiry Into Possible Halliburton Ties to Iran
By T. Christian Miller and Peter Wallsten
Times Staff Writers July 21, 2004

WASHINGTON — A Halliburton controversy erupted Tuesday, fueled by a grand jury investigation into whether the oil services giant violated federal sanctions by operating in Iran while Vice President Dick Cheney was running the company.

The investigation centers on Halliburton Products and Services Ltd., a subsidiary registered in the Cayman Islands and headquartered in Dubai that provided oil field services in Iran. The unit's operations in Iran included Cheney's stint as chief executive from 1995 to 2000, when he frequently urged the lifting of such sanctions.

Numerous U.S. companies operate in Iran, but under strict guidelines requiring that their subsidiaries have a foreign registry and no U.S. employees, and that they act independently of the parent company. <snip>

The Treasury Department has been investigating the matter since 2001. But Halliburton disclosed in public financial filings this week that the department had forwarded the case to the U.S. attorney in Houston (the Treasury Department refers such complaints only after finding evidence of "serious and willful violations" of the sanctions law) for further investigation. The company said a federal grand jury had subpoenaed documents on its Iranian operations.<snip>

A bank employee told the (CBS) reporter that when mail arrived for the Halliburton subsidiary, it was forwarded directly to Houston.


THE DAILY MIS-LEAD
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=46888


CHENEY ATTACKED FIGHT AGAINST TERROR WHILE ABROAD

On the same day that President Bush announced plans to investigate Iran for ties to terrorism,<1> Halliburton acknowledged that "a U.S. grand jury issued a subpoena to the company seeking information about its Cayman Islands unit's work in Iran,<2> where it is illegal for U.S. companies to operate." Earlier this year, CBS News reported that Vice President Dick Cheney was CEO of the company "during which time Halliburton Products and Services set up shop in Iran."<3> In fact, Cheney was so adamant about doing business with terrorist nations like Iran, he even went abroad to publicly attack American foreign policy after meeting with top officials from a foreign government.

Despite economic sanctions on Iran because of its ties to terrorists, Cheney openly bragged about Halliburton's business dealings there during the 2000 campaign.<4> Cheney argued that it was ethical for Halliburton to use "independent foreign subsidiaries" that exist in tax shelter countries like the Cayman Islands to skirt U.S. law. He also went abroad to attack American policy: According to the Malaysian News Agency, Cheney publicly attacked U.S. sanctions on terrorist countries after a meeting with top Malaysian government officials in Kuala Lampur.<5>

During the 2000 campaign, Cheney also claimed that, as Halliburton CEO, "I had a firm policy that we wouldn't do anything in Iraq,<6> even arrangements that were supposedly legal." Yet, earlier this year, The New Yorker reported "during Cheney's tenure<7> at Halliburton the company did business" in Iraq as well. The Washington Post reported that despite strict economic sanctions, Halliburton did up to $73 million in business<8> with Iraq while Cheney was heading the company.


Sources:
1. "Bush: U.S. probes possible Iran links to 9/11," CNN.com, 7/19/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=46889.
2. "Halliburton Subpoenaed Over Unit's Iran Work ," Reuters, 7/19/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=46890.
3. "Doing Business With The Enemy," 60 Minutes, 1/25/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=46891.
4. "Halliburton Iraq ties more than Cheney said," NewsMax.com, 6/25/01, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=46892 .
5. Malaysian News Agency, 4/20/98
6. "Contract Sport,"The New Yorker, 2/16/04, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=46893.
7. Ibid, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=46893.
8. "Halliburton's Iraq Deals Greater Than Cheney Has Said,"TruthOut.org, 6/23/01, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1338421&l=46894.

[Barrett808]

1. Subpoena Cheney! Please please please! n/t

[MidwestTransplant]

3. Can't wait for Edwards to bring this up in the debate

If Cheney says he didn't know, Edwards can accuse him of the Ken Lay defense.

[merh]

2. Thanks for the post and the links. So how many scandals

is cheney personally involved in? How many different agencies are investigating him? He is such a f'up - this admin is horrible!

[LeftHander]

4. Kick - This was talked about in Plame threads..

Speculation that Cheney's reason for outing Plame was to halt a investigation close to uncovering Halliburton illegal nuke technology sales under Cheney....

[itcfish1]

5. Cheney and Iran

are old news, This article came out in 2001. Now the press is getting on it? Multinational Monitor magazine, May 2001 http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Oil_watch/Cheney_Halliburton.html

[F.Gordon]

6. Welcome to DU itcfish1

No, it's not "current" news. And your link mentions USA*Engage. If you look at the statements being made by these Big Oil Lobbying groups you understand how annoyed they are with sanctions.

Big Oil managed to get sanctions lifted on Libya and I still believe they are working on Iran....all under the pretense of "fighting terrorism" and the woor on tar...and the "success" of our woor in Iraq.
-------------------------------------------------------------

Acting independently of its allies and trading partners, the U.S. government has restricted trade and investment by U.S. companies in nations believed guilty of terrorism and human rights violations. While these unilateral economic sanctions share a worthy goal—controlling or changing the behavior of rogue states—they have done more harm than good:

* By targeting American companies but not businesses from other nations, they leave the field open to foreign firms, hurting American companies and reducing American jobs. Sanctioned nations continue to enjoy the benefits of international trade and investment with the rest of the world.

* Unilateral sanctions limit the positive influence of American businesses on foreign nations and signal a policy of isolation and disengagement from the world’s most disturbing problems.

*Unilateral sanctions adversely affect the nation’s energy security interests by restricting the ability of U.S. oil and natural gas companies to develop needed petroleum supplies.

http://api-ec.api.org/policy/index.cfm?objectid=1BD6A657-820A-11D5-BC6B00B0D0E15BFC&method=display_body&er=1&bitmask=001001007000000000

Washington, DC – Persistent problems in government handling of visas for foreign business travelers have cost U.S. exporters more than $30 billion in revenue and indirect costs since July 2002, according to a study released today by eight U.S. international business groups. The study surveyed a diverse group of small, medium and large companies from across the spectrum of U.S. industries, including technology, health care, pharmaceuticals, retail, energy, automobile, publishing, engineering/construction, airlines and financial institutions. The survey findings indicate that, though a wide range of U.S. businesses have been financially affected by visa backlogs, small to medium-sized exporters experience disproportionately severe losses.

“The effects of losing over $30 billion throughout our economy as a result of inefficient management of the visa processing system are staggering,” said Bill Reinsch, President of the National Foreign Trade Council. “Our companies have expressed growing frustration to government officials and Congress for nearly two years over the broken business visa system, to no avail. Now that we have measured the costs, the results are clear: the U.S. cannot continue on this course. When legitimate foreign business executives and vital international customers cannot enter the U.S. to conduct normal business, it is our companies, our workers, our economy and our international relations that pay the price.”

http://www.usaengage.org/press_releases/2004/20040602%20NFTC%20visa%20survey%20released.html

[REVOLT823]

7. Does this mean Cheney supports Terrorism?

Halliburton was doing business in Libya, Iraq, and Iran. Clinton signed the 1995 legislation because he felt Iranian petroleum revenues were being used to fund terrorism. Sounds like it to me!!