EDITORIAL: Drawing a Bead: U.S. Sanctions Target Iran's Behavior

Oct 30, 08:11 AM

Current Headlines: By The Oklahoman

Oct. 30--FINANCIAL sanctions announced by the Bush administration against key components of Iran's military may finally get Tehran's attention -- slowing or halting the stream of weapons to terrorists and perhaps getting the Iranians to reconsider the march toward nuclear weapons.

For years, Washington has threatened consequences for Iran over its nuclear programs and with the discovery that Iranian-made explosives are killing and wounding U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. The sanctions unveiled last week should have some bite.

Targeted are Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps and Quds Force, a subset of the Guard. The announcement formally accused them of exporting terrorism. Sanctions involve cutting off more than 20 Iranian entities, including three state-owned banks, from the U.S. financial system.

The Revolutionary Guard has grown from a paramilitary force into a global operation with military and industrial subsidiaries. It builds and exports weapons, U.S. officials assert, and has become a financing conduit for the Iranian government. U.S. military officials say the Quds Force is directly responsible for funneling explosive devices for roadside attacks into Iraq and Afghanistan.

The action bars American interests from doing business with the targeted groups and freezes any assets belonging to the groups that are found in the United States.

It could be effective, especially if other nations join in. Similar action against North Korea forced banks across the world to choose between doing business with Pyongyang and participating in the U.S. financial system. Over time, sanctions appeared to work.

Some critics say this new move is a step toward U.S. military action against Iran. But where's the better idea at this point? Simple diplomacy seems to have failed. Bush bashers blame the administration for letting Iran go nuclear but alternately accuse the administration of war-mongering. From here the sanctions look like a measured, nonmilitary response to bad Iranian behavior.

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