The US Treasury sanctioned the two companies that make up more than 90% of Iran's domestic auto market, plus three rail operators, on Thursday, targeting the land routes Tehran has leaned on since a naval blockade cut off its oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. The move widens Washington's "Operation Economic Outcast" campaign and also hits foreign suppliers in Indonesia, the UAE and Turkey.
The Trump administration imposed sanctions on Iran's rail and auto sectors and their foreign suppliers on Thursday, the Treasury Department said, widening its wartime economic campaign to isolate Tehran. The sanctions extend a push Treasury announced on August 24 under "Operation Economic Outcast," which aims to cut funding for Iran's war effort, missile construction, cyberattacks and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Blockade pushes Tehran onto road and rail
A US naval blockade has already cut off Iran's oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, forcing the country to rely more heavily on autos and rail to move petroleum, fertilizer, chemicals and other goods. Thursday's sanctions target precisely those alternatives, according to the Treasury Department.
The designations name Iran Khodro Company, known as IKCO, and SAIPA Iranian Automobile Manufacturing Company. Treasury said the two companies represent more than 90% of Iran's domestic auto market. Treasury also designated the state-owned Islamic Republic of Iran Railway Company, which runs passenger and freight services, along with the Raja Passenger Trains Company and the Railway Transportation Company, which it described as a top private freight line.
Treasury widens pressure to foreign suppliers
Thursday's sanctions also reach beyond Iran's borders, targeting foreign companies in Indonesia, the UAE and Turkey that supply the country's auto industry. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the action targets Iran's enablers directly and lays the groundwork for the United States and its partners to drain the regime's revenue.
The campaign is escalating on multiple fronts at once. Brett Erickson, a sanctions expert and managing principal at Obsidian Risk Advisors, said Washington "is constricting its economic arteries on land." He added that the expanding sanctions risk severe costs for ordinary Iranians who depend on the targeted industries.
Source: Investing.com
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