US slaps sanctions on 21 Iran-backed firms

The United States on Tuesday slapped sanctions on 21 Iranian-backed firms, increasing pressure over Tehran's controversial nuclear programme and its alleged support for radical groups like Hezbollah and Hamas.

"Iran, through various front entities, has tried to work hard to evade existing sanctions. Obviously, we've just put in place both a new round of international sanctions and a new round of national steps, and this is just an ongoing process," State Department spokesman P J Crowley said minutes after Treasury Department announced the new set of sanctions.

Claiming that Iran is the primary funder of Hezbollah and has long been recognised as the most active state sponsor of terrorism, the Treasury said these designations expose Iran's use of its state apparatus including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force and state-run social service organisations to support terrorism under the guise of providing reconstruction and economic development assistance or social services.

"As its isolation from the international financial and commercial systems increases, the government of Iran will continue efforts to evade sanctions, including using government-owned entities around the world that are not easily identifiable as Iranian to facilitate transactions in support of their illicit activities," said Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Stuart Levey.

"Today's identifications will mitigate the risk that such entities pose to legitimate transactions," he said.

The companies slapped with sanctions were said to operate in Belarus, Germany, Italy, Japan and Luxembourg, as well as Iran, and their names include Ascotec Japan, Breyeller Stahl Technology, IFIC Holding AG and Onerbank Zao.

State Department spokesman P J Crowley said the US believes that sanctions is having an effect on the ground in Iran. "It is getting increasingly difficult to do business in Iran.

The cost of doing business for Iran is going up, he said. "We sense that there may well be a willingness on the part of Iran to enter into the kind of dialogue that we have long sought. So we think that the steps that have been taken, both at the United Nations and now follow-on steps taken by the United States, by the European Union, and other countries is getting Irans attention," he said.

Crowley said the US is making sure that the impact of the sanctions is not felt on the people of Iran.

"We are, in fact, looking to make sure that the impact is exactly where we directed it towards the regime and the agencies that are tied to the nuclear program, to their missile program, and to other areas of concern. We certainly do not want to have an effect on the Iranian people. We think that the things that they do that connect Iran to the rest of the world should continue," he said.