U.S. President Donald Trump welcomes Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S. March 20, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
On October 16, the Trump adminsitration blacklisted some 20 Iranian companies, including banks, steel mills, zinc mines, and manufacturers of cars, buses and tractors accusing them of supporting recruitment of “child soldiers” for Iran.
“This vast network provides financial infrastructure to the Basij’s efforts to recruit, train, and indoctrinate child soldiers who are coerced into combat under the IRGC’s direction,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin stated.
The US Treasury stated that the imposed sanctions are aimed at a “multibillion-dollar financial network” that supports the Basij Resistance Force, a volunteer militia within the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to recruit and train “child soldiers”.
Nonetheless, the list provided includes compnaies that do not have public links to the IRGC. For example, the sanctions targeted companies like the Tehran-based Bahman Group, which produces vehicles under license by Mazda, Isuzu and Mitsubishi, and the Iran Tractor Manufacturing Company.
The new round of sanctions imposed on Iran by the US is a logical continuation of the policy provided by the Trump administration in the Middle East. The current Washington leadership is actively fueling the conflict with Iran supporting both Israel and Saudi Arabia in their efforts against the Middle Eastern country as well as taking direct steps in this direction.
