US targeting Iran's Shahid Meisami Group
The United States has imposed sanctions on a new group of Iranian entities, including the Shahid Meisami Group, an affiliate of the Iranian Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research.
The US Department of the Treasury issued a statement on
December 3, in which it announced the new sanctions against the group and
its director Mehran Babri for involvement in the Iranian nuclear program.
Secretary of the
Treasury Steven Terner Mnuchin said the production of weapons of mass
destruction in Iran poses threats to the Islamic Republic's neighboring
countries.
US Secretary of
State Mike Pompeo, meanwhile, issued a statement in which he expressed his
country's concern over Iranian research and production of chemical materials
with dual use.
US Special Envoy
for Iran and Venezuela, Elliot Abrams, said last week that the US would tighten
its sanctions on Iran during the last weeks of outgoing President Donald
Trump's term.
He called on
president-elect Joe Biden to use the Iran sanctions as a pressure tool against
the Islamic Republic to the fullest.
Group
The Shahid Meisami Group is an affiliate of the Iranian Organization of Defensive Innovation and
Research. Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh used to run the group before his
assassination a few days ago.
The group is
responsible for a number of projects where Iran invests millions of dollars.
In 2014, the
administration of former US President Barack Obama said the group was
responsible for research in the field of nuclear science. It also accused Fakhrizadeh of managing Iran's unannounced
nuclear activities.
