Britain imposes sanctions on Iranian drone maker accusing supporting Russia
World
Britain imposes sanctions on Iranian drone maker accusing supporting Russia
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain on Tuesday imposed sanctions on an Iranian drone maker and a range of other foreign businesses, accusing them of supplying Russian forces with weapons and components for use against Ukraine.
Britain, the U.S. and the European Union have imposed a range of sanctions since last February to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow calls a "special military operation".
The British government set out 25 new sanctions on individuals and businesses in Iran, Turkey, Belarus, Slovakia, Switzerland and the UAE, as well as Russia.
"Today's landmark sanctions will further diminish Russia’s arsenal and close the net on supply chains propping up (President) Putin's now struggling defence industry," British foreign minister James Cleverly said.
Iranian drone maker Paravar Pars and seven of its executives, already subject to U.S. sanctions announced in February, and two Turkey-based exporters of microelectronics were among those targeted by Britain.
The sanctions prohibit UK entities from providing trust services - the creation of a trust or similar arrangement - to those sanctioned and also impose asset freezes, which block their assets held in the UK.
The government also imposed sanctions on several individuals, including Swiss national Anselm Oskar Schmucki, who it says is the chief of the Moscow office of a Switzerland-based crypto asset manager, DuLac Capital Ltd.
It alleged Schmucki's involvement in "obtaining a benefit from, or supporting the Government of Russia, by carrying on business in a sector of strategic significance, namely the Russian Financial Services Sector," as the reason for targeting him.
DuLac did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for a comment on the sanctions on Schmucki, who was sanctioned by the U.S. in May.
The British government, which has sanctioned over 1,600 individuals and entities since the start of the Ukraine conflict, said the latest round of sanctions marked its biggest-ever action on military suppliers in third countries.
