The U.S. Sanctions a Network Supplying the Islamic Republic's Drone Program

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced the sanctioning of six entities based in Hong Kong and China involved in purchasing drone parts for the Islamic Republic. The statement, released on Wednesday, March 8, indicates that these companies acted on behalf of the Iranian company 'Pishtazan Kavesh Gostar Bashra,' which is already under OFAC sanctions, and a subsidiary named 'Narin Sepehr Mobin Isatis' to acquire necessary components for drone manufacturing. According to the U.S. Treasury's statement, these two Iranian companies are the main suppliers for the Islamic Republic's drone and ballistic missile programs, and the sanctioned companies procure and transfer the required parts on their behalf. The Treasury's statement notes that this action aligns with Donald Trump's 'maximum pressure' campaign against the Islamic Republic, targeting the Iranian company's efforts to rebuild its supply chain and continue sourcing critical components from foreign suppliers. Scott Busent, the U.S. Treasury Secretary, remarked that the Islamic Republic continues to seek new ways to obtain essential components for strengthening its drone weaponry program through new front companies and third-country suppliers. The U.S. Treasury also emphasized its commitment to disrupting plans that enable the Islamic Republic to send deadly weapons abroad to its terrorist proxy groups. OFAC had previously sanctioned a network of companies in Hong Kong that procured sensitive Western materials and technology for the Islamic Republic's drone and missile programs on behalf of 'Pishtazan Kavesh Gostar Bashra.' The statement adds that these sanctions are based on a presidential executive order targeting the purveyors of weapons of mass destruction and the means to deliver them. The U.S. Treasury's statement also mentioned that OFAC had previously listed this company in August 2019 due to its management by Hamid Dehghan, who was sanctioned for his pivotal role in facilitating the purchase of military electronic equipment for the engineering company 'Rasta Fan.' The 'Rasta Fan' company had also been previously sanctioned for supporting the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the naval missile industry. Earlier, on Monday, March 6, the U.S. Department of State announced sanctions against 16 entities and vessels active in the Islamic Republic's oil and petrochemical industry as part of the maximum pressure campaign. Simultaneously, the State Department and OFAC sanctioned a total of 22 individuals and declared 13 vessels as blocked assets. The State Department described the sanctions from Monday as 'an initial step' towards achieving Donald Trump's maximum pressure campaign against the Iranian government aimed at disrupting the Islamic Republic's efforts to obtain oil revenues to finance terrorist activities. Scott Busent recently stated that the United States intends to reduce the Islamic Republic's oil exports to 100,000 barrels per day through the 'maximum pressure' policy. In an interview with Fox Business, he mentioned that the 'Iranian regime' currently exports between 1.5 million and 1.6 million barrels of oil daily, financing 'terrorist activities around the world' through this revenue.