WASHINGTON, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- The U.S. government announced sanctions Monday against Bank Tejarat, Iran's third-largest bank and one of Iran's few remaining global financial access points.
The Treasury Department said Bank Tejarat was sanctioned for its alleged involvement in Iran's nuclear weapons program, joining 22 other Iranian-linked financial institutions that have been sanctioned by the United States.
"At a time when banks around the world are cutting off Iran and its currency is depreciating rapidly, today's action against Bank Tejarat strikes at one of Iran's few remaining access points to the international financial system," David Cohen, undersecretary for terrorism and financial Intelligence, said in a statement. "Today's sanction against Bank Tejarat will deepen Iran's financial isolation, make its access to hard currency even more tenuous, and further impair Iran's ability to finance its illicit nuclear program."
Trade Capital Bank, a subsidiary of Bank Tejarat based in Belarus, was also sanctioned.
Bank Tejarat has nearly 2,000 branches throughout Iran, as well as foreign branches in Paris and Tajikistan.
The U.S. government said Bank Tejarat directly facilitated Iran's alleged nuclear efforts by moving tens-of-millions of dollars last year in an effort to assist the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran's effort to acquire uranium.
