Tit for tat response
In response to the US move, Iran’s Supreme National Security Council declared the US a “state sponsor of terrorism” and US forces in the region “terrorist groups”, state media reported.
In a statement carried by the official news agency IRNA, it said the move was in response to Washington’s “illegal and foolish act” of designating Iran’s Revolutionary Guards a terrorist organisation.
Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif also condemned the move as a “a(nother) misguided election-eve gift to [Israeli PM Benjamin] Netanyahu”.
“A(nother) misguided election-eve gift to Netanyahu. A(nother) dangerous US misadventure in the region,” he said in a tweet.
The impact
The designation allows the US to deny entry to people found to have provided the Guard with material support or prosecute them for sanctions violations. That could include European and Asian companies and business people who deal with the Guard’s many affiliates.
It will also complicate diplomacy. Without exclusions or waivers to the designation, US troops and diplomats could be barred from contact with Iraqi or Lebanese authorities who interact with Guard officials or surrogates.
The Pentagon and US intelligence agencies have raised concerns about the impact of the designation if the move does not allow contact with foreign officials who may have met with or communicated with Guard personnel. Those concerns have in part dissuaded previous administrations from taking the step, which has been considered for more than a decade.
