US joins Britain and Canada in imposing new sanctions against Iran

GlobalPost

The US will join Britain and Canada with new sanctions against Iran in response to Tehran’s defiance from the international community to halt its alleged nuclear weapons program, the Associated Press reported

The Obama administration made the announcement Monday that the US will join coordinated efforts from its allies to hit Iran’s economy. A US official anonymously told the AP that they plan to target Iranian companies, the petrochemicals industry and the Revolutionary Guard force.

ABC News reported Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner are expected to make an official announcement 

Britain’s new sanctions banned their financial institutions from doing business with Iran’s entire banking industry. Canada is expected to announce its new measures against Tehran Monday.

The sanctions were inspired by the UN’s atomic watchdog agency’s recent report alleging Iran has been implementing a secret nuclear weapons program. The decision was also made partly by information of an alleged assassination plot against the Saudi ambassador in the US, the Los Angeles Times reported

Iran has publicly condemned the International Atomic Energy Agency and their report, saying the mounting pressure from members of the international community will not deter them from pursuing their nuclear enrichment program for energy purposes.

More from GlobalPost: UN atomic watchdog passes resolution, Iran says nuclear program won't be stopped 

Sign up for our daily newsletter

Sign up for The Top of the World, delivered to your inbox every weekday morning.