Russia said it is taking legal action to block companies controlled by Iran from acquiring the strategic Astrakhan port on Russia’s side of the Caspian Sea in violation of United Nations sanctions.
“We know that these companies, through a certain chain, are under the direct control of the government or structures close to the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Igor Artemyev, head of the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service, told reporters in Moscow Tuesday. “Ports are strategic assets.”
After the Russian government blocked the deal two years ago, the Iranian-controlled companies bought a significant stake in the port from its Russian owners and now control at least 25 percent, Artemyev said. Russia is working to annul the deal, which he said contravenes United Nations sanctions against Iran.
“The Iranians have provoked Russian anger with their actions here,” Alexei Malashenko, a Middle East analyst at the Carnegie Moscow Center, told the Bloomberg news service. “Relations are already difficult.’’
A Russian court has already banned OAO Astrakhan Port from paying dividends and conducting share transactions, Artemyev’s office said in a statement. According to the court decision, the companies affected are Khazar Sea Shipping Lines, South Way Shipping Agency and Azores Shipping Company.
Russia also prohibited in 2010 the sale of Russian weapons, including the S-300s air defense missile system, to Iran after the UN imposed sanctions against the Islamic Republic. Iran has sued Russia for breach of contract.