Beginning of “New Sanctions Wave” by US Against Iran
The United States sanctioned four individuals and six companies for allegedly purchasing sensitive items for Iran’s Telecommunications Industries Company. The US Treasury Department imposed these sanctions on these persons and companies in line with the Trump administration’s “maximum pressure” policy against Iran.
Following the US presidential election, the Trump administration threatened that “a flood of new sanctions” is on the way and that a new sanction would be imposed against Iran every week.
Elliott Abrams, the US State Department’s special representative for Iran and Venezuela, discussed these sanctions during his visit to Israel on Sunday, November 8, in meetings with Israeli officials.
The US Treasury Department has now implemented these threats, adding Iranian and Taiwanese nationals and several companies based in Iran, Singapore, China, and Hong Kong to its sanctions list.
According to the US Treasury Department, the sanctioned individuals and companies “formed a procurement network for an Iranian military company” and were “acquiring highly sensitive items” for the “Iran Telecommunications Industries Company.”
The Treasury Department recognizes Iran’s Telecommunications Industries Company as a military company. This company was sanctioned in the United States in 2008 and in the European Union two years later.
Among the sanctioned individuals listed by the US Treasury Department are two Iranians named Mohammad Banihashemi and Mohammad Soltanmohammadi, as well as Chinhua Huang and Shi Misan, nationals of Taiwan.
The names and locations of the sanctioned companies are also explicitly stated in the list.
The new US sanctions against Iran were imposed just days after the presidential election. Lifting these sanctions would be difficult for the new US administration, as these sanctions are said to be unrelated to the JCPOA.
Before the election, Joe Biden stated in a September interview with CNN that if he wins the US presidential election, the country would re-engage in nuclear negotiations with Iran.
Source: DW
