WASHINGTON – The United States imposed sanctions on five Iranian companiesit alleges are working on part of the Islamic republic’s illegal ballisticmissile program.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin linked the measure to recentanti-government protests, arguing that Iran ought to spend more on publicwelfare rather than banned weapons.

“These sanctions target key entities involved in Iran’s ballistic missileprogram, which the Iranian regime prioritizes over the economic well-beingof the Iranian people,” Mnuchin said.

“As the Iranian people suffer, their government and the IRGC fund foreignmilitants, terrorist groups, and human rights abuses,” he added.

“The United States will continue to decisively counter the Iranian regime’smalign activity, including additional sanctions targeting human rightsabuses.

“We will not hesitate to call out the regime’s economic mismanagement, anddiversion of significant resources to fund threatening missile systems atthe expense of its citizenry.”

The five designated companies are all subsidiaries of Iran’s Shahid BakeriIndustrial Group (SBIG).

Under the sanctions, any assets that the firms hold in places under USjurisdiction will be frozen and US citizens are forbidden from doingbusiness with them.

And, perhaps more importantly, foreign institutions who work with thecompanies could be locked out of the US financial system — a risk thatEuropean banks, for example, would be loathe to take.

The United States has also requested for a UN Security Council emergencymeeting today to discuss the wave of protests in Iran. AFP