The US on Friday announced sanctions targeting entities it accused of enabling Iran's drone program, in Washington's latest action seeking to disrupt the production and proliferation of the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) used by Russia against Ukraine, Reuters reported.
“Today’s action reinforces our commitment to disrupt Iran’s production and proliferation of deadly UAVs that continue to be used by Russia against Ukraine and by regional terrorist proxies against our troops,” U.S. Treasury Department Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian Nelson, said in a statement quoted by the news agency.
“Treasury will continue to impose costs on those who seek to procure the components Iran needs for its UAV programs and enable the shipment of these weapons to destabilizing actors around the world,” he added.
The Treasury said it imposed sanctions on four entities that have procured critical parts for Iran's drone program as well as an executive of Iran Aviation Industries Organization (IAIO), a subsidiary of Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL).
The Treasury said Afshin Khajeh Fard, the chief of IAIO, oversees its efforts to produce drones and missiles.
The sanctions freeze any of their US assets and generally bar Americans from dealing with them. Those that engage in certain transactions with them also risk being hit with sanctions.
In July of 2022, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said the US had intelligence indicating that Russia is looking to Iran for UAVs.
A month later, it was reported that Iran had begun training Russians to use its drones, though it was also noted that Russia is experiencing “numerous failures” and technical glitches with the drones it purchased from Iran.
Iranian-made drones were also reportedly used in an attack in the Ukrainian town of Bila Tserkva, southwest of the capital Kyiv.
Earlier this month, the European Council decided to broaden the scope of the EU framework for restrictive measures on Iran in view of its military support of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)
