:quality(85)//cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/infobae/JDX6BRJ4IRGDVKHPXRV3RTY2QU.PNG)
The United States government announced sanctions on Tuesday five companies and one Chinese person whom he accuses of helping the Iranian regime to manufacture the drones it is sending to support Russian troops in Ukraine.
The US Treasury Department explained in a statement that the sanctioned companies are part of a China-based network that sells and supplies thousands of aerospace components, which can be used to make drones, to the US Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial Company. Iran (HESA).
According to Washington, HESA is involved in the production of the drones Shahed–136, which Tehran has been sending to Russia. This Iranian firm has been sanctioned by the United States since 2008 for its links to the Persian Ministry of Defense and for having supported the Revolutionary Guard.
The Chinese companies designated by the United States on Tuesday are Koto Machinery and his Hong Kong-based “front” company, Raven International Trade Limitedas well as Guilin Alpha, S&C Trade and the firm Caspro. The penalized person is Yun Xia Yuanwho works for S&C Trade.
Under the sanctions, all property and assets that these companies and individuals may have on US soil are blocked, and Americans are prohibited from transacting with them.
The Treasury Department also announced that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), in coordination with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), designated four entities and three individuals in Iran and Turkey for its involvement in the procurement of equipment, including European-sourced engines for unmanned aerial vehicles in support of Iran’s weapons and drone programs.
Those penalized are Defense Scientific and Technological Research Center (DTSRC), Amanallah Paidar, Farazan Industrial Engineering Inc., Arazan Industrial Engineering Inc., Murat Bukey, Ozone Havacilik Ve Savunma Sanayi Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Ashghar Mahmoudi, and Selin Techinc Co.
As indicated by Washington, this network operates on behalf of the Ministry of Defense and Logistics of the Iranian Armed Forces (MODAFL), which oversees various companies involved in the development of drones and ballistic missiles.
“Iran’s well-documented proliferation of unmanned aerial vehicles and conventional weapons to its proxies continues to undermine both regional security and global stability,” said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian E. Nelson.
“The United States will continue to expose foreign acquisition networks in any jurisdiction that supports Iran’s military-industrial complex,” he added.
He Center for Scientific and Technological Research for Defense, based in Iran, is majority owned by MODAFL and is part of the Defense Industries Organization of the Persian Defense Ministry. “Carries out defense-related acquisition, research and development activities.”
Amanallah Paidar (Paidar), meanwhile, “has acted as commercial manager and acquisition agent for the Center for Scientific and Technological Research.” According to the Treasury Department, he procured items for drones, “including inertial measurement units and attitude and heading reference systems.”
“Paidar also created and used Farazan Industrial Engineering, Inc. (Farazan) to purchase defense equipment for the DTSRC, and in one case attempted to purchase tens of thousands of dollars worth of European-sourced turbine engines applicable to drones and ground-based missiles. -Iranian air”, adds the Treasury statement.
Murat Bukey (Bukey), for his part, is an acquisitions agent who has supported Paidar and its acquisitions related to the Center for Scientific and Technological Research. The Biden government denounces that Bukey “used his now dormant company Ozon Spor Ve Hobi Urunleri (Ozon Spor) to facilitate the acquisition of various goods with defense applications, including chemical and biological detection devices, for Paidar.” He also attempted to provide European-sourced engines with drone applications and surface-to-air missiles to Paidar and Farazan; “and, separately, sold more than 100 European-sourced drone engines and related accessories worth more than $1 million to companies likely to transship the items to Iran.”
Another sanctioned entity is Asghar Mahmoudi (Mahmudi)which facilitated the supply of items, “including marine electronics”, to Paidar and the Center for Scientific and Technological Research.
“Mahmoudi has owned and operated Selin Technic Co (Selin Technic) as a front company to facilitate his business dealings with Paidar and other US-designated Iranian military entities,” the Treasury Department said. Selin is another of the entities sanctioned by Washington.
Keep reading:
