U.S. Treasury Announces New Sanctions on Iran
June 2010
On 16 June 2010 the U.S. Treasury Department issued a press release, Fact Sheet: U.S. Treasury Department Targets Iran’s Nuclear and Missile Programs.
Chalos & Co, P.C. prepared a helpful synopsis of the press release, an extract of which is reproduced, with their kind pression, below:
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On June 16, 2010, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced an updated and expanded set of designations targeting Iran’s nuclear and missile programs. The designations were made pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13382 – which is aimed at freezing the assets of proliferators of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their supporters – and are the first set of measures by the United States implementing the recent U.N. Security Council Resolution 1929 (UNSCR 1929). UNSCR 1929, issued on June 9, 2010, calls for, among other measures, all states to take action to prevent their own financial systems and institutions from being abused by Iran. The Treasury’s full report identifies Iran’s continued use of its financial sector and the shipping industry to carry out and mask its ongoing proliferation activities. Accordingly, the Department of the Treasury made the following designations: Post Bank of Iran; The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC); individuals and entities with ties to Iran’s WMD programs; and five (5) Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) front companies. Pursuant to the designations all transactions involving any of the designees and any U.S. person are prohibited. Moreover any assets the designees may have under U.S. jurisdiction, including but not limited to US dollar wire transfers, are frozen.
The Treasury designated IRISL, the national maritime carrier of Iran, in September 2008. The Treasury has now identified front companies established and controlled by IRISL, which have engaged in deceptive shipping practices and assisted IRISL in its attempts to avoid sanctions and to transfer arms-related material. The five (5) front companies of IRISL that were designated includes the following three (3) Iranian based companies: Hafiz Darya Shipping Company (HDS Lines); Soroush Sarzamin Asatir Ship Management Company, and Safiran Payam Darya (SAPID) Shipping Co. In addition, two (2) Hong Kong based companies affiliated with IRISL, Seibow Limited and Seibow Logistics Limited, were also designated. Furthermore, the Treasury identified 27 new vessels as blocked property due to their connection to IRISL and updated the name entries for 71 IRISL vessels which have already been blocked...."
As mentioned in the press release and above, the Treasury has identified 27 vessels as property blocked because of their connection to IRISL and has updated the entries for 71 already-blocked IRISL vessels to identify new names given to these vessels. The updated list (as at 16 June 2010) is available as a link from the press release itself but can also be downloaded below.
As the situation is constantly changing, those requiring up to date information are advised to review the U.S. Treasury Department website: www.ustreas.gov and also the dedicated Iran Sanctions webpage: www.ustreas.gov/offices/enforcement/ofac/programs/iran/iran.shtml
