Podcast

Europe adopts new Iran sanctions

Updated: 2010-07-27 13:44

 

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The European Union on Monday formally adopted a package of new sanctions against Iran, targeting the country's foreign trade, banking and energy sectors.

The move, which was agreed to in principle by EU leaders in June, is the latest in a series of measures taken by the international community in an effort to halt Iran's nuclear program.

EU foreign ministers adopted a decision "on a package of restrictive measures" in the areas of trade, financial services, energy and transport, said a diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity under standing rules.

The new measures will come into force in the next few weeks, after they are published in the bloc's official gazette, officials said.

"We have a comprehensive set of sanctions. This is something where we have all 27 countries working together," EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said ahead of the meeting.

According to the decision reached in June, the sanctions will target dual-use items that could be used as part of a nuclear program, and Iran's oil and gas industry - including the "prohibition of new investment, technical assistance and transfers of technologies."

Iran's shipping and air cargo companies will be blacklisted and banned from operating in EU territory, and new visa bans and asset freezes will be imposed on Iran's Revolutionary Guard. The sanctions also encompass trade insurance and financial transactions.

The new European restrictions will come on top of a fourth round of sanctions imposed last month by the UN Security Council to curtail Iran's nuclear program over fears it is developing weapons. The council endorsed those sanctions after Iran rebuffed a plan to suspend uranium enrichment and swap its stockpiles of low-enriched uranium for fuel rods.

Iran denies that it is working on a nuclear weapon, saying its program is intended solely for peaceful purposes such as energy-generation, and that it has the right to enrich uranium under the international nonproliferation treaty.

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About the broadcaster:

Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.