Latest Iran sanctions will hurt trade

The latest sanctions on Iran will harm trade with the UAE, an Iranian business official said on Tuesday, as UAE authorities said the embargo must not hurt legitimate commerce.

"The reality is that this kind of sanctions on Iran will have a negative impact on the trade in the UAE, particularly in Dubai - there is no question about it," said Morteza Masoumzadeh, Vice-President of the Iranian Business Council in Dubai.

Because of the sanctions, "the cost of the business has gone up, the (shipping) insurance is a problem," he said.

Sanctions do not apply to various types of export cargo from Iran, Masoumzadeh said, but insurance companies will still "say that we cannot cover a ship to go to Iran for loading cargo from Iran to outside" he said.

Iran is a significant UAE trading partner, with trade volume between it and the emirate of Dubai alone estimated at about $10 billion a year, mostly imports from the Islamic republic.

The UAE began taking steps to implement the latest UN sanctions against Iran in June. The UAE central bank ordered the freezing of 41 bank accounts as a result of the sanctions on Iran, according to Emirates 24|7 daily.

US Undersecretary of Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Stuart Levey wrapped up a two-day trip to the UAE on Monday, the US embassy said.

Levey is on a tour of the UAE, Bahrain and Lebanon this week "to discuss the new UN Security Council Resolution last June imposing a fourth round of sanctions on Tehran," official Wam news quoted him as saying.

He warned that "as Iran becomes more isolated and is driven from other markets, there will be greater attempts to engage in evasive conduct and therefore simply keeping a steady vigilance is not good enough," Wam said.

The Security Council hit Iran with the fresh sanctions on June 9 over its controverisal nuclear programme.

The United States and European Union have since imposed even tougher punitive measures of their own, which contain provisions to penalise Tehran's trading partners.

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