Donald Trump's first sanctions against Iran: A major crackdown on terror funding

The Trump administration on Thursday imposed its first package of sanctions against Iran, after an international network transferred hundreds of millions of dollars by smuggling Iranian oil to China in order to fund the Iranian military.

State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said, "The United States will not tolerate Iran's destructive and destabilizing behavior, which is why we are today imposing sanctions on an international network that transfers illicit revenues to the Iranian military."

According to the allegations, the network operated to transport Iranian oil to China through a front company called Sepehr Energy, which was involved in financing the General Staff of Iran's Armed Forces. In addition, shadow ships that helped smuggle oil were also placed on the sanctions list.

Bruce stressed that "we will continue to disrupt the illicit sources of funding of the Iranian military and terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Hezbollah," adding that Washington will use all tools at its disposal to "hold the Iranian regime accountable for its destabilizing behavior and its pursuit of nuclear weapons."

The U.S. Treasury Department announced that the sanctions apply to entities and individuals from China, India, and the United Arab Emirates.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant explained that Iran relies on oil revenues to "finance the development of its nuclear program, and to produce ballistic missiles and drones." He stressed that the U.S. is "determined to combat Iran's attempts to obtain funding for these malign activities."

The new sanctions are in line with a new presidential directive by President Donald Trump, who this week signed a security document titled: "Exerting maximum pressure on the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, preventing all avenues to obtain nuclear weapons, and countering Iran's negative influence."

Kikar Hashabbat contributed to this article.