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Treasury Levey: US, Allies Must Go Beyond UN Sanctions To Pressure Iran

23 June 2010 01:19 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The U.S. and other countries should explore what economic measures can be taken beyond the recent United Nations sanctions to force Iran to abandon its nuclear program, a senior Treasury official said Tuesday, APA reports quoting nline.wsj.com website.
Stuart Levey, undersecretary for terrorism and international financial intelligence, said the fourth round of sanctions marked an "inflection point" in the effort to pressure Iran. But he warned that the country’s leaders will attempt "work-arounds" to avoid the impact of the moves.
"The resolution adds important tools - but it is up to the U.S. and its partners around the world to ensure that we use the tools available to us comprehensively, effectively, and collectively," Levey said in opening remarks to a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing.
Last week, the U.S. imposed financial sanctions on dozens of additional Iranian companies and senior Iranian officials in connection with the U.N. resolution passed earlier this month.
Levey said the U.S. and some of its allies, including the European Union and Australia, have started implementing the resolution and taken further measures.
The U.S. plans "to not only fulfill the letter of the resolution’s mandates, but also to live up to its spirit, by working together with our allies to impose measures that will affect Iranian decision-making," he said.
The private sector also plays a key role in the effort, he said, and Treasury published Tuesday a public advisory to explain the financial provisions of the U.N. resolution.
Treasury officials plan to work with finance ministries and financial institutions in coming weeks to ensure they avoid the risk of associating with Iranian business supporting nuclear proliferation or terrorism, he said.