The United States sanctions Russia’s VTB bank over ties to Iran

The United States sanctions Russia’s VTB bank over ties to Iran

🔸The United States applied sanctions related to Iran against VTB Bank Public Joint-Stock Company on Monday, 23 Shahrivar, accusing it of involvement in evading Iranian sanctions.

🔸The move was based on sanctions that were imposed in 2022 against VTB Bank, the second-largest bank in Russia, when the bank was targeted following Moscow’s full-scale attack on Ukraine.

🔸Scott Bessent, the U.S. Treasury Secretary, said in a statement: “Under the so-called ‘economic exile’ operation, the Treasury Department will continue to target and disrupt those who provide material, technological, or financial support and enable the Iranian regime to keep its terrorist enterprise.”

🔸He added: “The Treasury Department will not tolerate any support for this regime and will continue to identify, expose, and isolate those who help it.”

🔸Bessent had warned last week that, as part of continuing economic pressure on Tehran to end the more-than-six-month standoff between the United States and Iran, the Trump administration would sanction a major bank.

🔸Since the start of the conflict on 9 Esfand of last year, the United States has imposed a series of economic measures against Iran targeting oil exports, maritime transport networks, arms supply channels, financial intermediaries, digital asset exchanges, and aviation links.