“The Obama administration is preparing to impose its first financial sanctions on Iran since it forged a landmark nuclear agreement in July,” The Wall Street Journal reported.
“The planned action by the Treasury Department, U.S. officials told The Wall Street Journal, is directed at nearly a dozen companies and individuals in Iran, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates for their alleged role in developing Iran’s ballistic-missile program,” the report said.
According to the report, critics of Obama administration said Wednesday that the impending sanctions are paltry compared with the amount of sanctions relief the Iranian regime is set to get next year under the nuclear deal.
The Iranian regime has test-fired two ballistic missiles since the July agreement, one in October and a second in November, according to U.S. officials.
A United Nations panel ruled this month that the October launch violated a U.N. Security Council resolution that bans Iran’s development of ballistic-missile systems. The Obama administration had warned Tehran the U.S. might use unilateral sanctions to retaliate.
“We’ve been looking for some timeat options for additional actions related to Iran’s ballistic missile program based on our continued concerns about its activities, including the October 10th [missile] launch,” a senior U.S. official said late Wednesday.
“We are considering various aspects related to additional designations, as well as evolving diplomatic work that is consistent with our national security interests.”