Tags:

Chinese and Russian defense companies that strike weapons deals with Iran will suffer the “very full force” of U.S. sanctions, according to the State Department, despite Western disagreements about the legality of President Trump’s move to renew an international arms embargo.

“It's the position of the United States that the arms embargo should be extended, and had it been extended, we would not have had to snap back to restore the full panoply of U.N. sanctions,” State Department special representative Elliot Abrams, the lead official for Iran, told reporters Wednesday. "So, one practical effect, we believe, will be to say to arms manufacturers and traders around the world that if you engage in business with Iran, very full force of these new, or rather restored, sanctions will be felt immediately, they will be placed on you.”