US attempts to block Iranian air routes... Strengthening economic offensive

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Jang Jae-eun = The United States is strengthening its economic offensive against Iran, its war partner, by attempting to block not only shipping but also aviation.

This is an extremely strong effort to pressure an end-of-war agreement and is expected to add to the pain of Iran's economy, which is suffering from long-standing sanctions and war.

According to foreign news reports on the 22nd (local time), the US government will impose sanctions on foreign companies that provide services such as fuel supply to Iranian airlines starting on the 23rd.

The U.S. Treasury placed representatives of Iran's largest commercial airline, Mahan Airlines, on a sanctions list and added 27 smaller airlines to the new sanctions list.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said in an interview with CNBC the previous day, "Once an Iranian plane lands, we cannot provide fuel or landing services, and we cannot sell airline tickets. If we do not do that, we will be kicked out of the dollar system."

These third-party sanctions (secondary boycott) are a strengthening measure in addition to the maritime transportation blockade already in effect against Iran.

The US administration, led by President Donald Trump, has claimed that Iran is transporting weapons and fighters on civilian flights.

The Trump administration is blocking maritime trade through Iranian ports, impeding cargo and energy shipments.

Iran has switched most of its cargo transportation to land routes due to the sea blockade, but land routes are also said to be experiencing severe bottlenecks.

Matthew Levitt, a senior researcher at the American think tank Institute for Near East Policy, said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that if the world joins in sanctions, "Iranian airlines will be relegated to domestic flights only."

He explained that this measure is, in some ways, a further implementation of the already existing sanctions against Iran.

It is expected that the blocking of air routes will be an additional negative factor for the Iranian economy, which is suffering from inflation, a sharp decline in the value of the rial, and a shortage of essential goods.

Iranian airlines have played a key role in bringing in goods such as medicine and auto parts and helping Iranians leave the country.

The impact of the United States' strengthening sanctions on air routes is already becoming visible.

Iran's Civil Aviation Organization announced that all flights from Tehran, Iran, to Baghdad, Iraq, and Muscat, Oman, were canceled as of midnight on the 23rd.

Azerbaijan said it would ban all Iranian airlines from using its airports.

Georgia announced that all flights from its country to Iran were suspended from the 21st.

Mahan Airlines has informed its customers that flights to Turkuye and Oman will be suspended at the request of those countries.

However, Iranian flights to some destinations such as Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) are still operating as of the 22nd, but it is unclear how long the risk of sanctions will be ignored.

The only countries that are actively resisting the Trump administration's sanctions against Iran are China and Russia, Iran's biggest allies.

According to FlightTrader24, an aircraft tracking website, Mahan Airlines continued to fly to the Russian capital Moscow and China's industrial center Guangzhou until late on the 22nd.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs refused to join the sanctions, saying, "Friendly exchanges and cooperation between China and Iran based on mutual respect and mutual interests are just and legal."

“China, Russia and Iran are trying to do everything they can to undermine the U.S. international sanctions regime, especially unilateral sanctions,” Levitt said.