US imposes fresh sanctions against Iran, Russia

The US State Department on Friday added two Iranian shipping companies, a port operator and a marine service provider to its new sanctions list, continuing its unjust campaign against the Iranian nation.

The department said they were part of the “logistics network” between Moscow and Tehran.

The targets included Khazar Sea Shipping Line, and Nasim Bahr Kish, two Iranian shipping companies, and Grand Sea LLC, a maritime service provider in Makhachkala, Russia.

The sanctions also include the entities related to the recent agreement between Iran and Russia to build a railway section of the North-South Corridor.

The Iran-Russia relations have angered the US. That includes a recent agreement between Iran and Russia on the construction of a railroad section that connects southern Asia to northern Europe.

The US announced it’s deeply concerned by any move to go around sanctions.

Tehran has slammed Washington’s sanctions, saying that the Rasht-Astara railway project is part of its neighbor-oriented strategy, which is based on cooperation for security, development, and common prosperity.

Iran and Russia this week signed an agreement on the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway, a strategic transport corridor that connects the existing railways of the two countries and Azerbaijan.

The 162-kilometer railway will connect the Iranian city of Rasht, near the Caspian Sea, to Astara on the border with Azerbaijan.

The project, which is aimed at integrating the transport and information routes of Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, and India, is carried out within the framework of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).

The spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry has slammed “unjustified and invalid” concerns voiced by the administration of US President Joe Biden over Tehran’s expansion of trade cooperation with other states, stressing the latest agreements with Russia and Pakistan are in line with Iran’s emphasis on the policy of good neighborliness.