EU reaches deal on extra Iran sanctions, says Germany

LUXEMBOURG - The European Union has reached a deal on a package of sanctions against Iran on top of those decided last week by the United Nations Security Council, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Monday.

Western powers suspect that Iran’s nuclear programme is designed to create an atomic bomb, something that Tehran denies. As a result, the country has been the subject of several rounds of UN sanctions, the last of which was approved Wednesday.

Westerwelle said the EU’s decision to add to them was “an important signal of determination”.

He said the bloc would restrict sales to Iran of so-called “dual use” goods which could be used for civilian or military purposes.

Iranian companies in the banking and financial sector would be excluded from the EU, while investment, technical assistance and transfer of technology to Iran’s oil and gas industry would be banned.

Furthermore, EU member states would move to freeze bank accounts in their territories belonging to members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. Irisil, an Iranian shipping company, would be barred from operating in EU waters.

The package is expected to be endorsed by EU leaders at a summit in Brussels Thursday, and enacted by foreign ministers at their next monthly meeting, scheduled for July 26.