United Kingdom to tighten sanctions against Iran

The British government has introduced legislative measures to tighten sanctions against Iran.

As reported by Deputy Foreign Minister of the United Kingdom Stephen Doughty, the restrictions will affect the trade and maritime shipping of the Islamic republic.

"The financial measures will further restrict the Iranian government's ability to access the UK financial system and raise funds to support its nuclear program. Under this legislation, the list of goods, technologies, and services subject to trade bans is being expanded. This concerns areas that play a key role in industries contributing to the buildup of Iran's nuclear capabilities (such as energy, software, metallurgy, gold mining), as well as related types of activity, including maritime shipping, insurance, and banking services," reads Doughty's written statement submitted to the House of Commons (the lower chamber) of the British parliament.

Also banned is the export of "additional goods and technologies of significant importance for the production of conventional weapons and the development of Iran's nuclear capabilities." In addition, a ban is being introduced on the landing of Iranian aircraft in the United Kingdom, with the exception of a number of cases.

Doughty added that "the legislation expands the powers to impose sanctions on maritime vessels that ensure the implementation of Iran's nuclear program and contribute to its destructive and destabilizing activities."

At the same time, he indicated that several projects connected with Iran will be exempted from sanctions. "General licenses will be issued allowing the continued operation of the Shah Deniz gas field in Azerbaijan, which provides critically important energy supplies to our European partners. This decision is a continuation of our long-standing policy and is consistent with the approaches of the European Union and the United States, which also provide for similar exceptions for activities related to the Shah Deniz field," Doughty stated.

The new measures concerning Tehran were introduced ahead of a speech by the head of the United Kingdom's Foreign Ministry, Ed Miliband, in the House of Commons devoted to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The head of the Foreign Office is expected to announce on Tuesday afternoon the introduction of a ban on trade with illegal Jewish settlements in the West Bank of the Jordan River.

Source: TASS