Crack down on Iranian business in Dubai

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Sept. 15 (UPI) -- The United Arab Emirates is cracking down on Iranians seeking to do business in Dubai in the wake of pressure from U.S. officials, record show.

The Boston Globe said Monday its examination of registration records indicates that 1 percent of new businesses in Dubai have an Iranian partner, compared with 6 percent in 2006 and 2007. U.S. officials told the newspaper it's because of pressure put on the United Arab Emirates to crack down on Iranian business interests seeking to avoid U.S. sanctions.

"The U.A.E. is taking steps to be vigilant," U.S. Treasury Undersecretary Stuart Levey, a key architect of the banking sanctions, told the Globe. "They have a challenge there and they are starting to grapple with it."

The Globe said that interviews with more than a dozen Iranian businessmen revealed that United Arab Emirates authorities have begun to refuse to register Iranian work visas, adding that most international banks operating in the United Arab Emirates have stopped opening new accounts for Iranians.

U.S. President George Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have urged the United Arab Emirates to help the United States in its efforts to sanction Iran for its nuclear enrichment activities.