The United States announced new sanctions against major Iranian automobile and railway companies on Thursday, as well as foreign suppliers linked to those industries, in another effort by the Trump administration to put economic pressure on Tehran, Reuters reported.
The measures fall under the Treasury Department’s “Operation Economic Outcast," launched August 24 with the stated goal of restricting Iranian funding for the war, missile development, cyberattacks and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The administration says the campaign is intended to pressure Tehran into negotiations to end the war that began following a US-Israeli strike on Iran about seven months ago.
According to the Treasury Department, the US blockade of Iranian oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz has increased Tehran’s reliance on road and rail networks to move petroleum, fertilizer, chemicals and other commodities. The latest sanctions are aimed at those transportation channels.
Among the newly sanctioned companies are Iran Khodro Company (IKCO) and SAIPA Iranian Automobile Manufacturing Company (SAIPA), which Treasury said account for more than 90% of Iran’s domestic automobile market. The list also includes the state-owned Islamic Republic of Iran Railway Company, which operates passenger and freight services; Raja Passenger Trains Company; and Sherkat-E Rah Ahan-E Khamle-O-Naghle, known as the Railway Transportation Company, described by Treasury as a leading private freight operator.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the action “directly targets Iran’s enablers and lays the groundwork for the United States and our partners to drain the regime’s revenue once and for all."
The announcement follows another round of US sanctions earlier this week against 10 individuals and entities in China, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. Washington accused the targets of assisting Iran in obtaining components for its weapons programs, including equipment sought by the country’s Defense Ministry.
The sanctions block assets under US jurisdiction and prohibit US persons from conducting transactions with the designated individuals and entities. The Treasury Department said the measures are designed to hinder Iran’s efforts to rebuild its weapons capabilities and increase the financial costs for those helping Tehran obtain military-related equipment.