The bid by the United Arab Emirates for American assistance in developing and implementing nuclear energy facilities has raised, once again, the role that the U.A.E plays in the transiting of American goods to Iran. U.S. lawmakers have threatened to block a deal that would permit such cooperation pointing to the U.A.E.’s poor record in export enforcement.

An article just posted on the Wall Street Journal‘s website quotes the response of a U.A.E. official to these charges:

U.A.E. officials say that in the past they have been lax in monitoring the flow of sensitive technologies through the ports. But they say they have stepped up enforcement of U.N. sanctions against Iran and tightened business-license regulations for Iranian nationals. They have also signed on to U.S.-led efforts to track air and sea shipments to Iran.

Over the past three years, U.A.E. officials say, they have shut down 40 Iranian companies operating in Dubai over either export-control violations or lack of proper licenses. In the past six months, Emirati authorities have also blocked more then 10 shipments of goods for potential military use heading to Iran through Dubai, largely from Asia. “We will not allow anyone to use our territory to harm anybody else,” said Yacub al-Hosani, a Foreign Ministry official.

These numbers of shut-downs and enforcement actions, if true, are not in themselves terribly impressive. More importantly, this crack-down is only on exports of certain proliferation and military technologies, but have no effect on the U.A.E.’s role as the transit point for other exports that evade the United States’ comprehensive sanctions against Iran. What this means is that U.S. exporters must still exercise particular due diligence with respect to their exports to the U.A.E. to obtain assurance that the final destinations of these shipments are not in Iran.

Permalink


Copyright © 2009 Clif Burns. All Rights Reserved.
(No republication, syndication or use permitted without my consent.)