EU may impose sanctions against Russian and Iranian shipping companies

The EU Council of Foreign Ministers will consider introducing new sanctions against Iran for transferring military technology to Russia.

The issue is to be considered on Monday, November 18. An unnamed European official said this during a briefing in Brussels, Radio Svoboda reports.

Among the main topics of the meeting is the reaction to the support that Russia receives from third countries, in particular Iran and North Korea. According to the official, the EU countries have a political agreement on the second package of sanctions against Iran, which provides for restrictions on the transfer of ballistic missiles and other military technology to Moscow. Work is also underway on the fifteenth package of sanctions directly against Russia.

The new sanctions are expected to include an asset freeze and an entry ban for several individuals and legal entities that facilitate the transfer of military equipment from Iran to Russia. The preliminary investigation has identified one individual and four companies, including three Russian shipping companies and Iran’s national shipping company, the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL Group), as involved in transporting components for drones and other weapons.