US imposes fresh sanctions on Iran drone development network

The United States yesterday imposed fresh sanctions on over a dozen entities and individuals allegedly connected to Iran’s drone production project, as Washington and its allies seek to clamp down on the spread of Tehran’s drone capabilities to conflict fronts such as Ukraine and the Middle East.

The US Treasury Department announced its imposition of the sanctions targeting four individuals and ten entities, including “intermediary companies, front companies, and logistics businesses” based in Iran, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Indonesia.

Those entities consisted of front companies within those nations, which reportedly sent Iran sensitive equipment enabling the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) Self-Sufficiency Jihad Organisation – the research and development unit that builds cyber-warfare equipment and weaponry – to produce more advanced UAVs and drone technology.

The Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian Nelson, was quoted as saying that “Iran’s illicit production and proliferation of its deadly UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) to its terrorist proxies in the Middle East and to Russia continues to exacerbate tensions and prolong conflicts, undermining stability.”

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