The US Treasury has put 20 more companies and individuals on its blacklist of sanctions for allegedly contributing to Tehran’s nuclear energy program and helping the country bypass illegal sanctions.

Among those targeted by the sanctions are transport and freight companies Aban Air, DFS Worldwide and Everex, and the officials of the three entities as well as the Malaysia-based Petro Green.

The sanctions list bans US entities and individuals from doing business with the newly-banned firms and individuals.

The United States, Israel and some of their allies have repeatedly accused Iran of pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program. Over the false allegation, Washington and the European Union have imposed a series of illegal unilateral sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

On Wednesday, the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs adopted a new measure to tighten the country’s illegal sanctions against the Islamic Republic over its nuclear energy program.

The panel passed an anti-Iran act that targets the country’s auto and mining industries as well as its foreign currency reserves. The act, which focuses on Iran's finance and energy sectors, in particular its oil exports, also allows the US president to subject other Iranian industries, such as engineering, to similar restrictions.

Iran refutes the allegation over its nuclear energy program and argues that as a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), it is entitled to develop nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.

In addition, the IAEA has conducted numerous inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities but has never found any evidence showing that Iran's civilian nuclear program has been diverted to nuclear weapons production.
 

News ID 184816