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US Treasury Imposes New Sanctions on Iranian Companies

The US Treasury building. (AFP)
The US Treasury building. (AFP)
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US Treasury Imposes New Sanctions on Iranian Companies

The US Treasury building. (AFP)
The US Treasury building. (AFP)

The United States imposed new sanctions Thursday on Iran-linked shipping and petrochemical companies, including two shipping firms based in China.

The sanctions also target 20 shipping vessels linked to firms in China, Vietnam, and the United Arab Emirates, the Treasury Department's website showed.

The sanctions were issued under a 2018 US executive order that restored sanctions targeting Iran's oil, banking, and transportation sectors.

The US sanctioned weeks ago nine entities across multiple jurisdictions that have played a critical role in the production, sale, and shipment of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Iranian petrochemicals and petroleum to buyers in Asia.

These sanctions are the latest measure by the US President Joe Biden administration to limit the Iranian government's ability to earn money from the energy products subject to sanctions.

Meanwhile, the efforts to revive the Iranian nuclear deal remain stalled, while Iran continues to provide Russia with drones to use in its invasion of Ukraine.

Iran is increasingly turning to buyers in East Asia to sell its petrochemical and petroleum products, in violation of US sanctions, said Brian Nelson, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence.

“The United States remains focused on targeting Tehran’s sources of illicit revenue and will continue to enforce its sanctions against those who wittingly facilitate this trade,” he added.

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Iran Warns European Powers Over IAEA Resolution Against it

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi. Photo: Iran's presidency
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi. Photo: Iran's presidency
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Iran Warns European Powers Over IAEA Resolution Against it

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi. Photo: Iran's presidency
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi. Photo: Iran's presidency

A resolution against Iran pushed for by three European powers at the UN nuclear watchdog board of governors meeting will "complicate matters", Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told his French counterpart, the foreign ministry said on its Telegram channel on Wednesday.

The International Atomic Energy Agency and diplomats said on Tuesday that Iran has tried in vain to prevent a Western push for a resolution against it at the UN nuclear watchdog's board meeting by offering to cap its stock of uranium just shy of weapons grade.

One of two confidential IAEA reports to member states, both seen by Reuters, said Iran had offered not to expand its stock of uranium enriched to up to 60% purity, near the roughly 90% of weapons grade, and had made preparations to do that.

The offer is conditional, however, on Western powers abandoning their push for a resolution against Iran at this week's quarterly meeting of the IAEA's 35-nation Board of Governors over its lack of cooperation with the IAEA, diplomats said, adding that the push was continuing regardless.

During IAEA chief Rafael Grossi's trip to Iran last week, "the possibility of Iran not further expanding its stockpile of uranium enriched up to 60% U-235 was discussed," read one of the two quarterly IAEA reports.
It added that the IAEA had verified Iran had "begun implementation of preparatory measures". A senior diplomat added that the pace of enrichment to that level had slowed, a step necessary before stopping.
Western diplomats dismissed Iran's overture as yet another last-minute attempt to avoid censure at a board meeting, much like a vague pledge of deeper cooperation with the IAEA in March of last year that was never fully implemented.
"Stopping enriching to 60%, great, they shouldn't be doing that in the first place as we all know there's no credible civilian use for the 60%," one Western diplomat said, adding: "It's something they could switch back on again easily".
Iran's offer was to cap the stock of uranium enriched to up to 60% at around 185 kg, or the amount it had two days ago, a senior diplomat said. That is enough in principle, if enriched further, for four nuclear weapons, according to an IAEA yardstick. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons.
The report said Iran's stock of uranium enriched to up to 60% had grown by 17.6 kg in the past quarter to 182.3 kg as of Oct. 26, also enough for four weapons by that measure.

The second report said Iran had also agreed to consider allowing four more "experienced inspectors" to work in Iran after it barred most of the IAEA's inspectors who are experts in enrichment last year in what the IAEA called a "very serious blow" to its ability to do its job properly in Iran.
Diplomats said they could not be the same inspectors that were barred.
The reports were delayed by Grossi's trip, during which he hoped to persuade Iran's new President Masoud Pezeshkian to end a standoff with the IAEA over long-running issues like unexplained uranium traces at undeclared sites and extending IAEA oversight to more areas.