What will India’s reaction be to this?
U.S. sanctions 2 Indian, 6 Chinese firms for Iran dealings
The United States has imposed sanctions on six Chinese state-run firms for selling missiles or chemical weapons-related supplies to Iran, a State Department spokesman said on Tuesday. Two Indian companies, Sabero Organic Chemicals and Sandhya Organic Chemicals, and the Austrian arms maker Steyr-Mannlicher were also sanctioned, said State Department deputy spokesman Adam Ereli.
The nine companies were punished for violating the 2000 Iran Nonproliferation Act, designed by Washington to block international aid for what it suspects are Iranian nuclear and chemical weapons programs. “These entities are being sanctioned based on credible information that they transferred equipment and technology listed on multilateral export control lists to Iran,” Ereli said. The sanctions, which bar the companies from doing business with the U.S. government and prevent them from obtaining export licenses needed to buy certain technology from American companies, were imposed on Dec. 23 and would be published shortly on U.S. government’s Federal Register, he said. Ereli identified the Chinese firms as China National Aerotechnology Import Export Corp. (CATIC); China North Industries Corp., (NORINCO), Zibo Chemet Equipment Co. the Hongdu Aviation Industry Group; Ounion International Economic and Technical Cooperative Ltd.; and the Limmt Metallurgy and Minerals Co.