Washington has asked Argentina to seize a Venezuelan cargo plane that has been parked on its territory since June and is linked to the issue of US sanctions imposed on Iran.
The U.S. Department of Justice said the Boeing 747 was sold in October 2021 to a Venezuelan company by an Iranian company in violation of U.S. sanctions against the two entities to substantiate its request to confiscate the aircraft.
“Working with our partners around the world, we will be tough on governments and public entities that try to evade sanctions and our export controls,” ministry spokesman Matthew Olsen said in a statement. Recently, a judge allowed 12 of them to leave the country, but four Iranians and three Venezuelans are still in Argentina.
Argentina’s security minister, Anibal Fernandez, said he had received “information” from “foreign organizations that part of the crew belonged to companies associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.”
The US Department of Justice said: “The captain of the plane has been identified as the former commander of this ideological Iranian army, which the US considers a terrorist organization.”
Tehran claims the plane’s status is “completely legal” and that its freeze is part of a “propaganda operation” related to disagreements between the West and Iran over its nuclear program.
