US sanctions AEOI and head of Iran Atomic Energy Organization

The Treasury Department announced on Thursday sanctions on the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) and its head Ali Akbar Salehi as the US continues its Maximum Pressure campaign on Iran.

Iran Press/America: The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) oversees the civilian nuclear sector in the country.

However, sources said the US will once again waive its sanctions on Russian, Chinese and European firms that work at four Iranian nuclear facilities.

The US Treasury will issue waivers to sanctions that bar non-US firms from dealing with the AEOI, the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

The sources said the waivers will allow those countries to continue working at the heavy water reactor in Arak, the Fordow enrichment facility, the Bushehr nuclear power plant, and the Tehran research reactor.

The sanctions are the latest in a string of economic penalties applied to Iran since the US unilaterally withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA, or Iran nuclear deal) in 2018.

Iran has responded by gradually rolling back on its own commitments, but continued working with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, May 8, 2018, unilaterally declared his country's withdrawal from the JCPOA and the return of Iran's nuclear sanctions in violation of Washington's obligations under the deal.

Tehran took retaliatory steps against the US move and following European sides' lack of action, scaled back its obligations under the deal.

Following the US re-imposition of sanctions and European Union failure in carrying out its commitments, Iran took retaliatory measures in 2019 and has scaled back its obligations under the JCPOA in five steps.

Tehran has said its measures are reversible and it will continue cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog IAEA.

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