The US Department of the Treasury on Friday removed sanctions on three Iranians, but stated that the move did not reflect a change in its sanctions policy toward Iran.

The department announced that it had removed Behzad Ferdows, Mehrzad Ferdows and Mohammad Reza Dezfulian from the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list. This means that they are no longer blocked under Executive Order 13382. 

The Treasury originally imposed sanctions on the three men in September 2020. Behzad Ferdows and Mehrzad Ferdows were placed on the list for acting on behalf of the Iranian manufacturer Mammut Industries. Mohammad Reza Dezfulian was placed on the list for acting on behalf of Mammut Industries’ subsidiary, Mammut Diesel. Both Mammut Industries and Mammut Diesel had previously been placed on the SDN list.  As part of the sanctions, the US froze the assets of each individual and barred US citizens from conducting business with them.

After announcing the removal, a Treasury spokesperson claimed that this decision had nothing to do with talks on restoring US and Iranian compliance with the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which is formally called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). There have been indirect talks between Iran and the US on reviving the nuclear deal.