EU Expands Iran Sanctions to Include Threats to Freedom of Navigation in the Middle East

The sanctions regime was originally created by the EU in 2023 to address Iranian military support for Russia in its war against Ukraine.

FILE PHOTO: European Union flags fly outside the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium September 19, 2019. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo

The Council of the European Union announced that EU foreign ministers voted on May 22 to widen the bloc’s sanctions framework on Iran to include threats to freedom of navigation in the Middle East.

The updated framework will allow the EU to impose restrictive measures against individuals and entities linked to the regime in Tehran and its conduct in the Strait of Hormuz, formalizing a political agreement reached at the Foreign Affairs Council on April 21.