Obama Administration Intensifies Sanctions against Iranian Front Companies

Ariela Fleisig — October 28, 2011 – 2:48 pm | Barack Obama | Foreign Policy | Iran Comments (0) Add a comment

The Obama Administration yesterday intensified its actions against Iranian nuclear proliferation by sanctioning six new front companies for the state’s official shipping line.

Matthew Levitt, Director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy’s Stein Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence, wrote for The Iran Primer (PDF):

In its latest action against Iran, the Treasury Department has sanctioned six new front companies connected to Iran’s official shipping line. The six companies, based in Panama, are part of an Iranian game of cat-and-mouse designed to hide Tehran’s ownership and mask its ongoing activities related to both proliferation and terrorism. The companies took ownership of the Iranian vessels after Treasury sanctioned their previous owners, working out of the Isle of Man, last November. Over the past three years, the United States has now designated over 150 vessels, companies, entities and individuals related to the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL).

Levitt explained that these new sanctions are part of the Administration’s growing campaign to take action against Iran’s “illicit conduct”:

The action is part of a widening campaign by Washington to take tougher action against Iran, particularly after revelations about a plot to kill the Saudi ambassador in the United States. The Obama administration is also pressing international allies to sanction key Iranian entities already designated by the United States, such as Iran Air, and to seriously consider taking similar action against Bank Merkazi, the Central Bank of Iran.

Some of these actions will be focused specifically on Tehran’s support for terrorism, leveraging the recent assassination plot in consultations with allies and international organizations. Others will focus on other aspects of Iran’s illicit conduct, including its global proliferation activities and suppression of human rights at home.

Click here to read Levitt’s full article (PDF).

 

Comments

There are no comments for this entry