Iran: EU sanctions further expose bloc’s miscalculation, deviation from dialogue

European Union's fresh sanctions against a number of Iranian entities and individuals were illegal and "another failed miscalculation" by the bloc, an Iranian ambassador says.

"The so-called EU sanctions list has no basis in int'l law. It's just another failed miscalculation," Iran's Ambassador to Vienna Abbas Baqerpour said in post on his Twitter account on Tuesday.

The envoy said that the EU's move to impose sanctions on the head of Iran-Austria (and Iran-Germany) friendship group, despite his outstanding efforts, indicates a "serious deviation from the principle of dialogue."

In a press release issued on Monday, the EU Council said it has decided to impose restrictive measures on additional 32 Iranian individuals and two entities in a fifth round of sanctions over what the bloc claimed to be Tehran's crackdown on the recent foreign-backed riots.

According to the EU press release, Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Mohammad Mehdi Esmaeili, Minister of Education Yousef Nouri, the deputy commander and spokesperson of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), a number of MPs, members of the police and judiciary in various parts of the country, as well as prison wardens are among the individuals listed.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kan'ani said Tehran would soon announce a list of its reciprocal sanctions in response to the European Union's recent bans.

SS