US targets Iran's shipping sector

Washington: The United States sought to increase pressure on Iran over its nuclear programme on Wednesday by imposing sanctions against its national maritime carrier and 18 affiliates, targeting much of its shipping sector.

The US Treasury Department said the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), Iran's national maritime carrier, and the affiliates provided logistical support for Iran's Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics and that they lied about their activities.

The department said it was banning any transactions between US citizens and IRISL and its affiliates and would try to freeze any assets the companies have under US jurisdiction.

The sanctions are the latest US step to raise pressure against Iran to suspend uranium enrichment, a process that can produce fuel for atomic power plants or for nuclear weapons.

"Not only does IRISL facilitate the transfer of cargo for UN-designated proliferators, it also falsifies documents and uses deceptive schemes to shroud its involvement in illicit commerce," Stuart Levey, Treasury's under-secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement.

He accused Iran of a broad pattern of lies and deception to advance its nuclear and missile programmes.

Iran's UN Mission said the new sanctions were another display of US hostility toward Iran based on false claims about Tehran's nuclear programme.

"Such actions on the part of the United States are counterproductive, will not help in finding a solution to resolving any issues, and would only make the situation more complicated," the mission said in a statement.

IRISL is a global operator with a worldwide network of subsidiaries and connects Iranian exporters and importers with South America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa.

Insurers under pressure

Washington and its allies are urging international insurance companies to make sure that they are implementing UN sanctions against Iran, a senior US Treasury Department official said on Wednesday.

Daniel Glaser, the Treasury Department's deputy assistant secretary for terrorist financing and financial crimes, said it was important for insurers to be "as vigilant as possible, both in the area of maritime insurance and in the area of reinsurance".

The United States has been interpreting three UN Security Council sanctions resolutions as broadly as possible and has long been pushing global financial institutions to sever ties with Iran due to suspicions it has a covert nuclear weapons programme, diplomats and government officials have said.

In recent months, diplomats in say, Washington and its European allies have turned their attention on the insurance industry so that the world's top insurers would refrain from providing coverage to Iranian companies or firms doing business with Iran.