,,iii  #aacth ,,congress  #b;d ,session 
,s4 ,,res4 #cbh  ,,in ,,the ,,senate    
,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states  ,january  
#f1 #bjad,mr4 ,cruz 7for himself and    
,mr4 ,inhofe7 submitted the following   
resolution2 which was referred to the   
,committee on ,foreign ,relations       
,,resolution  ,expressing the sense of  
the ,senate on steps the ,government of 
,iran must take before further bilateral
 negotiations between the ,government of
 ,iran and the ,united ,states          
,government occur4  ,whereas1 on        
,september #bg1 #bjac1 the ,president of
 ,iran1 ,hassan ,rouhani1 and ,president
 ,barack ,obama engaged in the first    
direct contact between ,iranian and     
,united ,states leaders since #aigi2    
,whereas the ,government of ,iran has   
yet to take any practical steps towards 
halting ,iran's nuclear programs and    
remains a committed state-sponsor of    
terrorist groups that have been         
responsible for ,american deaths in     
,lebanon1 ,saudi ,arabia1 ,iraq1 and    

,afghanistan2 ,whereas1 since the       
election of ,president ,rouhani1 the    
persecution by the ,government of ,iran 
of religious minorities1 notably        
,christians1 has increased not          
decreased2 ,whereas ,united ,states     
citizens remain imprisoned in ,iran1    
including ,pastor ,saeed ,abedini1 ,amir
 ,hekmati1 and ,robert ,levinson2       
,whereas ,president ,rouhani has called 
,israel the ,zionist state that has been
 a wound that has sat on the body of the
 ,muslim world for years and needs to be
 removed1 and ,iran's ,supreme ,leader  
,ayatollah ,khamenei has called ,israel 
a rabid dog facing annihilation2        
,whereas a ,joint ,plan of ,action was  
released from ,geneva on ,november #bd1 
#bjac1 outlining first step1 voluntary  
measures to be taken over a six month   
duration providing the ,government of   
,iran with some #g1jjj1jjj1jjj in relief
 from economic sanctions1 while         
extracting no substantive concessions   
from ,iran on their nuclear program2 and

 ,whereas the representatives of the    
,united ,states engaging in these       
negotiations failed to raise the issue  
of the ,united ,states citizens         
imprisoned in ,iran and to rebuke their 
,iranian counterparts for their vicious 
rhetoric against ,israel at the highest 
levels3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that it 
is the sense of the ,senate that1 before
 further bilateral negotiations between 
the ,government of ,iran and the ,united
 ,states ,government occur1 the         
,government of ,iran must-- 7#a7        
immediately and without conditions      
release all ,united ,states citizens    
unjustly detained in ,iran2 and  7#b7   
publicly affirm the right of ,israel to 
exist as a ,jewish state4