US Hits 32 Entities Over Alleged Iran Missile, Drone Programs

By Staff, Agencies

The United States has slapped sanctions on 32 individuals and entities across multiple countries, alleging support for Iran’s peaceful missile and drone programs.

In a press statement released on Wednesday, the US State Department said those designated are based in Iran, China, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, India, and other jurisdictions, claiming that they “operate multiple procurement networks supporting Iran’s ballistic missile and unmanned aerial vehicle [UAV] production.”

The new sanctions are in furtherance of US President Donald Trump’s second National Security Presidential Memorandum, enacting the so-called maximum pressure campaign against Iran, it said.

It further claimed that the restrictive measures back a recent move by the European countries to reinstate UN Security Council sanctions against Iran previously lifted under the US-abandoned 2015 nuclear deal.

It also reiterated the US’s policy to use “all available means” to “disrupt and counter” Iran’s missile and drone programs.

Meanwhile, the US Treasury Department alleged that those blacklisted “pose a threat to US and allied personnel in the Middle East and to commercial shipping in the Red Sea.”

“At the direction of President Trump, we are putting maximum pressure on Iran to end its nuclear threat,” said US Treasury’s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, John Hurley.

The US move comes as Iranian officials say the country has grown immune to illegal US sanctions and increased oil sales to fund its infrastructure projects. Iran has also developed its homegrown defense and military capabilities to thwart malicious plots by its enemies.

Last week, TankerTrackers, a leading energy analytics firm, reported that Iran’s oil exports reached a record 2.3 million barrels per day in October, the highest level in seven years for the sanctions-hit country.