US targets Iran missile, drone programs as UN measures lapse
Reuters, October 18, 2023
WASHINGTON, Oct 18 (Reuters) – The United States took a series of steps on Wednesday to signal that Iran’s missile program will remain restricted after the expiration of U.N. Security Council sanctions and to curb Iran’s drone transfers to Russia.
Russia said on Tuesday that transfers of missile technology to Iran no longer needed Security Council approval as of Wednesday, when the U.N sanctions lapse, without saying whether it now planned to support Tehran’s missile development.
The U.S. effort to limit Iran’s missile and drone programs comes amid renewed American criticism of Tehran for backing Hamas, which carried out an Oct. 7 rampage against communities in southern Israel in which at least 1,300 people died.
The expiration of the U.N. sanctions falls under a “sunset” clause of the defunct 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which gave Tehran relief from American, European Union and U.N. sanctions in exchange for limiting its nuclear program. Former U.S. President Donald Trump abandoned that deal in 2018 and restored U.S. on Iran sanctions.
While efforts by U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration to revive the deal’s restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program have failed, the U.N. sanctions are still expiring as called for under the deal.
The U.S. Treasury Department said it imposed sanctions on 11 individuals, eight entities and one vessel based in Iran, Hong Kong, China and Venezuela that enable Iran’s “destabilizing ballistic missile and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) programs.”
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