Canada reimposed sanctions on 11 Iranian entities on Tuesday for their contribution to Iran ‘s nuclear activities and ballistic missile program, Foreign Minister Anita Anand said.
Canada de-listed the entities in 2016 after a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers. Anand announced the measures at a meeting of Group of Seven foreign ministers in Paris, saying they were intended to restrict Iran’s access to funding and sensitive technology linked to its nuclear and missile programs.
“Canada’s position is unequivocal: Iran must never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon,” a foreign ministry statement quoted Anand as saying. The measures were imposed on 11 entities that contributed to “the Iranian regime’s proliferation-sensitive nuclear activities and ballistic missile program or to the financing of its malign activities,” the statement said. But Ottawa said Tehran had repeatedly failed to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog, over its nuclear activities and had not complied with the provisions of earlier UN Security Council resolutions. The demands include sanctions relief, access to frozen assets and war reparations, the official said. Washington says nuclear issues must feature in initial talks. Iran’s security chief, Mohsen Rezaei, said in October that Tehran was debating whether to lift its longstanding ban on nuclear weapons if hostilities resume, although he said no such decision had been taken yet.
