White House: Support for Hezbollah Will Continue Iran's Problems in International Markets

A White House spokesperson has urged Iran to stop its support for the Lebanese group Hezbollah. The spokesperson emphasized that the continuation of such assistance will prolong Iran's difficulties in accessing international markets. According to the C-SPAN network, Eric Schultz, the White House Deputy Press Secretary, stated on Monday during a press conference in response to a question about remarks by Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, regarding Iran's financial aid: "We have asked all those who assist Hezbollah to cut off their support. We know that Iran supports terrorism. We know that Iran supports Hezbollah, and that is why we have imposed severe sanctions on Iran in this regard." Hassan Nasrallah said on Friday that the new round of U.S. sanctions would not affect the group because Hezbollah receives its financial needs directly from Iran, not from Lebanese banks. He asserted that as long as Iran has money, the group will receive funds and resources. Meanwhile, Eric Schultz noted on Monday that Iran's access to international markets has been problematic since the nuclear agreement, stating: "Market actors and financial institutions look at Iran's behavior. If (the country) continues to finance terrorism, if Iran continues its financing and support for Hezbollah, of course, such behavior will have an impact. International financial institutions do not want to trade with a country that engages in actions (such as financing terrorism)." The White House official added: "That is why we ask Iran to stop these actions, as they are not only bad for national security because they support terrorism, but they are also detrimental to their national interests." Eric Schultz pointed out that sanctions against Hezbollah have so far been effective in cutting off the group's access to international financial institutions, stating that if Iran continues its support for Hezbollah, the group will still have access to funding sources. However, this White House official made it clear on Monday that if Iran wants access to international markets, it must control its behavior. The "Hezbollah Financing Prevention Act," which Congress passed last year, warns foreign banks against conducting transactions with this group and allows the U.S. Treasury to impose severe sanctions on any financial institution that cooperates with Hezbollah. Meanwhile, following Iran's nuclear agreement with six world powers, known as the JCPOA, Iranian officials have stated that despite this agreement, Tehran has not been able to benefit sufficiently from the JCPOA and has requested the U.S. to remove obstacles to non-American banks' dollar transactions with Iran. In this context, Ramadan Sharif, the public relations officer of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, stated on Sunday regarding Hassan Nasrallah's remarks about Iran's support and funding for Hezbollah that there should be no concern about Western reactions. He emphasized that Nasrallah's statements do not give them "more excuses." The U.S. has classified Hezbollah as a terrorist organization since 1995. The European Union, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand have also listed the military wing of Hezbollah as a terrorist organization. Recently, the Arab League and Gulf Cooperation Council countries have also declared Hezbollah a terrorist group.