The United States imposed new sanctions on Tuesday targeting 14 people and companies that help Iran obtain weapons as Tehran works to rebuild its ballistic missile inventories after US-Israeli attacks, the Treasury Department said, according to Reuters.
The targets, which also include aircraft, are based in Iran, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates and were cited for their involvement in procuring or transporting weapons or components on Iran's behalf, Treasury said in a statement.
"As the United States continues to deplete Iran’s ballistic missile inventories, the regime is seeking to reconstitute its production capacity," Treasury said in the statement quoted by Reuters.
"Iran is increasingly relying on Shahed-series one-way attack unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to target the United States and its allies, including energy infrastructure in the region," it added.
The new sanctions come as Washington and Tehran are at a standoff over whether to begin a second round of talks to reach a deal that would keep the Strait of Hormuz open and bring an end to the war.
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump announced that the ceasefire in Iran would be extended for an unspecified amount of time, in order to allow the Iranian leadership time to submit a proposal for a deal.
In a post on Truth Social, the President made clear that the US naval blockade will remain in place until an Iranian proposal is submitted.
The Iranian news agency Tasnim later reported that Iran did not ask to extend the ceasefire with the US.
According to the report, Iran is not ruling out the possibility that everything, including the extension of the ceasefire, is a deception by Trump. The Iranian news agency brought up the possibility that Trump might announce an extension, but that the United States or Israel could later carry out strikes in Iran.
Tasnim cited information indicating that Iranian officials are closely monitoring such a possibility and that Iran does not underestimate such a scenario.