New Delhi: Tehran is preparing the necessary documents to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali said in an interview with the Media.
“The process of obtaining full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization consists of numerous stages that a candidate country needs to implement within the established time frame,” he pointed out.
“According to the schedule, Iran is preparing documents, passing through these stages, and notifying the Shanghai Cooperation Organization regularly,” the envoy added.
However, The US, a few days back, imposed new sanctions on Iran. The Biden administration has announced a fresh round of Iran-related sanctions amid continuing diplomatic efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran.
Under-secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson in a statement said, “While the United States is committed to achieving an agreement with Iran that seeks a mutual return to compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, we will continue to use all our authorities to enforce sanctions on the sale of Iranian petroleum and petrochemicals,”
The US Department of State also issued its own Iran-related sanctions on Wednesday against entities based Iran, Vietnam, and Singapore.
Iran on Saturday announced that it was imposing sanctions on 61 more Americans over their support for foreign-based dissident Iranian groups like the Mujahideen-e-Khalq (MEK). Among those blacklisted by Tehran include ex-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, former President Donald Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and former National Security Adviser John Bolton. Giuliani, Pompeo, and Bolton have been widely reported to have taken part in MEK events and voiced support for the group.
(Vinayak)