“We consider the step made to be unacceptable and that it contradicts international law,” Interfax quoted a statement issued by the Russian Foreign Ministry on Friday.
The US Treasury Department said on Thursday that the targeted entities operated in Turkey, Spain, Germany, Georgia, Afghanistan, Iran, Liechtenstein and the United Arab Emirates.
David Cohen, top Treasury sanctions official, also warned that companies and governments still risk heavy penalties if they expand trade with Iran.
The Russian statement said the fresh sanctions “contradict the spirit” of last November’s nuclear deal between Iran and the six world powers, adding that the agreement obliges Washington to refrain “from introducing new sanctions related to the nuclear activities of Tehran.”
Iran and the six major world powers – the United States, Russia, China, France, the UK, and Germany – signed a nuclear deal in Geneva, Switzerland, last November to pave the way for the full resolution of the West’s decade-old standoff over Tehran’s nuclear energy program. The two sides started to implement the agreement on January 20 and aim to continue negotiations for a final comprehensive deal.
The Russian Foreign Ministry statement noted that it is the second time Washington is imposing sanctions against Iran since the deal took effect.
“The fact that another expansion of the US blacklists occurred almost ahead of the talks to draft a comprehensive agreement on the Iranian nuclear program is especially alarming,” it said, warning that the sanctions “can significantly affect the negotiating process.”