22 Companies Linked to Iran and Syria Added to US Blacklist

The US Department of Commerce has blacklisted a number of companies and individuals on charges of cooperation with Syria and the Islamic Republic of Iran. These individuals have been accused of assisting Syria’s weapons of mass destruction program and unauthorized transfer of American goods to Iran.

The US Department of Commerce announced on Wednesday, November 14 (23 Aban) that it has added 22 companies and individuals to its blacklist.

According to Reuters news agency, these individuals and companies have been accused of supplying materials and equipment for Syria’s weapons of mass destruction production program and unauthorized transfer of goods to the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Companies and individuals that appear on the blacklist of the Bureau of Industry and Security of the US Department of Commerce must obtain licenses and approvals from the government to purchase goods and equipment from American companies.

In its latest action, this bureau has added 22 companies and individuals from Iran, Syria, Bahrain, Turkey, Jordan, Oman, Lebanon, Pakistan, Senegal, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, France, and Britain to its blacklist.

The US Department of Commerce states that among those on this list are the company Rahal, which operates in the field of technology and medical equipment, and the Jordanian-Lebanese company S.A.L., which is engaged in the trade of laboratory instruments, and they are accused of contributing to the supply of materials needed for Syria’s biological and chemical weapons production program.

Unauthorized Transfer of American Goods to Iran

The Bureau of Industry and Security of the department adds that the companies Al Ras Gate and Bestway Line FZCO, along with six other companies, have admitted that they “knowingly” transferred American goods to Iran without obtaining licenses, and for this reason are being placed on the blacklist.

Since February of last year, when America withdrew from the nuclear agreement between Iran and the 5+1 countries, the United States not only re-imposed lifted and suspended sanctions against the Islamic Republic but has also increased and intensified these sanctions, particularly in recent months.

Washington describes the purpose of these sanctions as imposing “maximum pressure” on Tehran to change the behavior of the Islamic Republic’s government and to bring Iran to the negotiating table to reach a new and comprehensive agreement.

The United States says that sanctions, which primarily target the Islamic Republic’s oil exports and financial and banking relations, have severely reduced Iran’s oil revenues and placed this country in severe hardship.

Rouhani Admits to Difficult and Complex Conditions

Hassan Rouhani, the head of the twelfth government, although he has repeatedly called the maximum pressure policy ineffective, admitted on Tuesday, 21 Aban, in his speech in Kerman that “the country’s conditions are extraordinary, difficult and complex” and the Islamic Republic is going through “the hardest days of its life.”

Rouhani said that the government needs at least 450 trillion tomans to run the country, while customs and tax revenues are projected at 150 trillion tomans.

He, who had spoken extensively during provincial visits to Yazd and Kerman about the government’s dire financial situation and the severe decline in oil revenues, claimed on Thursday at the opening ceremony of the International Conference on Islamic Unity that with patience and resistance one can stand up to American pressure, and by doing so in the past year “every month we have witnessed a victory and success in the country.”

Source: DW