WASHINGTON—The Trump administration on Tuesday levied additional sanctions on Iran, targeting its elite military unit and ballistic missile program.
The move followed a late-night notification to Congress on Monday that Iran was continuing to comply with the 2015 international nuclear agreement, a determination that came after an internal administration debate over whether to certify Iran’s compliance.
“This administration will continue to aggressively target Iran’s malign activity, including their ongoing state support of terrorism, ballistic missile program, and human rights abuses,” said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in imposing new sanctions Tuesday.
Referring to the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Mr. Mnuchin said, “We will continue to target the IRGC and pressure Iran to cease its ballistic missile program and malign activities in the region.”
Iran’s mission at the United Nations didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. On Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said at an event in New York that Tehran is receiving “contradictory signals” from the Trump administration but will continue to comply with the terms of the deal.
The Treasury Department on Tuesday designated 16 entities and individuals it said supported the IRGC. The State Department also designated two Iranian organizations involved with Tehran’s ballistic missile program.
“These sanctions target procurement of advanced military hardware, such as fast attack boats and unmanned aerial vehicles, and send a strong signal that the United States cannot and will not tolerate Iran’s provocative and destabilizing behavior,” Mr. Mnuchin said in a statement.
The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, as the 2015 nuclear agreement is formally known, was championed by the Obama administration as a way to obtain Iran’s agreement to significantly cut back its nuclear program in exchange for relief from international sanctions.
President Donald Trump criticized the deal during his presidential campaign and has threatened to rip it up. For now, however, his administration is continuing a review of the accord and officials said Monday they would look to work with allies to strengthen its enforcement and fix what they described as its flaws, including clauses that allow some restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program to expire.
In announcing the decision to recertify Iran’s compliance, Trump administration officials said Iran wasn’t adhering to the spirit of the deal and vowed that the administration would look to levy additional sanctions to address concerns about terrorism as well as other issues.
Among the individuals and entities blacklisted in Tuesday’s action are Iran-based Rayan Roshd Afzar Co. and three associated individuals. The Treasury Department said the company produced technical components for the IRGC’s drone program and produced tools that supported the IRGC’s efforts to block social media and telecommunications access in Iran.
Qeshm Madkandaloo Shipbuilding Cooperative Co was sanctioned for supplying equipment to the IRGC’s navy and the U.S. sanctioned Turkey-based Ramor Group and its owner Resit Tavan for providing goods to Qeshm Madkandaloo.
The Trump administration also blacklisted a China-based procurement agent and several related China-based entities related for supporting Iran’s military activities.
The Treasury Department also moved against Iran-based Ajily Software Procurement Group, which it said uses hackers to steal engineering software from the U.S. and other western countries.
Treasury said the group sells some of the software to Iran’s military, which cannot acquire it otherwise because of U.S. export controls.
Requests for comment from Rayan Roshd Afzar Co., Qeshm Madkandaloo Shipbuilding Cooperative Co, and Ramor Group owner Resit Tavan weren’t immediately returned. Ajily Software Procurement Group couldn’t be reached for comment.
The action against Ajily followed a move Monday by the Justice Department against some related individuals. The Justice Department charged two Iranian men it said worked with a third man, who was pardoned by President Barack Obama as part of a prisoner swap with Iran that took place as the deal took effect in 2016. The two men were accused of hacking a Vermont software company and selling sensitive software to Iran, and the Treasury Department said the men were affiliated with the Ajily procurement group.
