Germany has withdrawn permission to operate for the Iranian airline Mahan Air after a campaign of pressure from the United States to Berlin.
Germany has revoked the license of the Iranian airline Mahan Air, reported Monday the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, quoted by Reuters, after accusing the company of transporting military equipment and personnel to Syria and other war zones in the Middle East.
The United States included Mahan Air in its list of companies sanctioned in 2011, under the allegation that it provided financial and other support to the Islamic Revolutionary Guardian Corps (IRGC) in Iran, moreover Washington has put pressure on its European allies to do the same.
The ban will take effect immediately, a spokesperson for the Portfolio has indicated.
However, a German government source has told Reuters that the measure does not constitute the reimposition of wider sanctions against Iran. Mahan Air, the second largest airline in Iran after Iran Air, operates four flights a week between Tehran, Iranian capital, and the German cities of Düsseldorf and Munich.
The US Treasury Department has threatened to impose sanctions against the countries and companies that offer the 31 rights of aircraft landing or services to the Iranian airlines Mahan Air, Meraj Air, Caspian Air, and Pouya Air.
German firms have been especially pressured by the US ambassador, Richard Grenell, a close ally of US President Donald Trump, after the re-imposition of sanctions against Iran.
Following Germany’s move, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has issued a message on his Twitter account in which he hailed Berlin’s decision and urged Washington’s allies to join the measure.
tmv / ctl / myd / rba
Translated by JRE/AR
