Former Top Treasury Official: Trump’s Iran Sanctions More Symbolic Than Punitive

Sanctions the Trump administration imposed on Iran after the country conducted another ballistic missile launch are more symbolic than punitive, a former Obama administration Treasury Department official said Monday.

The Trump administration warned Iran it would be “on notice” after a recent ballistic missile launch and proceeded to impose sanctions on 25 entities linked to Iran's ballistic missile program and support for terrorism Friday. The move was broadly interpreted as the start of a new era of cracking down on illicit Iranian conduct.

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“I saw that as more of a signaling of intention … than I did a real effort to create real financial pressure on Iran,” Glaser said during a conference hosted by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies' Center on Sanctions and Illicit Finance.

“What separates the United States application of sanctions from just about anybody else's in the world, still, to this day, is that our application of sanctions are a lot more than just a glorified press release,” he continued. “Our sanctions not only are enforced vigorously but they occur within the context of a strategy to apply financial pressure. They are not simply to announce our displeasure. They are not simply to 'name and shame.'”

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“Depending on what criterion is used, Iran tested at least 12 ballistic missiles from the time the [nuclear deal] was inked to when President Obama left office,” said Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior Iran analyst at FDD. “Only in one instance was Iran met with new designations from the Treasury Department, which were delayed.”

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