US Blacklisting: MP Accuses White House of Political Misconduct


US Blacklisting: MP Accuses White House of Political Misconduct

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A senior Iranian lawmaker slammed the US for imposing new bans on some firms and individuals under the pretext of evading existing sanctions on Tehran, and described the move as political misconduct.

“The action that the US and the West have taken was an unusual move and some sort of political misconduct, who tried, contrary to the Geneva deal, to put the Iranian nation under pressure by imposing some new sanctions,” Vice Chairman of Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Mansour Haqiqatpour told the Tasnim News Agency on Monday.

His comments came after the US Treasury and State departments on Thursday slapped sanctions against more than a dozen companies and individuals for evading US sanctions against Iran. The blacklisting is widely seen as an attempt to head off moves in Congress to impose tougher sanctions that would be in clear breach of the Geneva agreement.

The new bans can be the bane of the Geneva deal of last month as the sides are still in talks on ways of implementing the document. On Thursday, Iran's delegation left talks with representatives of the G5+1 in Vienna on the implementation of the deal  after the US expanded its sanctions blacklist, with Iranian officials arguing the new measures are in breach of the agreement brokered in Geneva last month.

Iran and the Group 5+1 (the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany) on November 24 signed a six-month deal on Tehran’s nuclear program based on which the world powers agreed to suspend some non-essential sanctions and to imposed no new nuclear-related bans in return for Tehran's decision to freeze parts of its nuclear activities and to allow more inspection of its nuclear facilities.

During the half-year period, Iran and the G5+1 are due to negotiate a comprehensive deal with the aim of resolving for good the standoff over Iran's nuclear program after a decade of on-off meetings and failed attempts.

“The wall of mistrust that exists between Iran and the US is still getting higher. We have not seen any goodwill form the Americans in recent months, and their entire comments are made from the position of anger at the Iranian nation and officials,” Haqiqatpour added.

The fresh anti-Iran sanctions have already drawn condemnation from various Iranian authorities.

“Unfortunately, we are witnessing serious confusion in the approach, decisions and remarks of American officials, and the US administration is fully responsible for the consequences of (these) indiscreet measures,” Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham said on Friday.

“The onus for consequences of such indiscreet measures is all on the US administration,” she warned.

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