EU approves new sanctions on Iran to deter nuclear program

The restrictions come on top of a fourth round of sanctions imposed last week by the UN Security Council to curtail Iran’s nuclear program over fears it is developing weapons. The council endorsed those sanctions after Iran rebuffed a plan to suspend uranium enrichment and swap its stockpiles of low-enriched uranium for fuel rods.

The EU “remains deeply concerned about Iran’s nuclear program, and new restrictive measures have become necessary,’’ EU president Herman Van Rompuy said after a European summit focused on economic issues.

A statement said the sanctions will target dual-use items that could be used as part of a nuclear program, and Iran’s oil and gas industry — including the “prohibition of new investment, technical assistance, and transfers of technologies.’’

Iran’s shipping and air cargo companies will be blacklisted and banned from operating in EU territory, and new visa bans and asset freezes will be imposed on Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. The sanctions also encompass trade insurance and financial transactions.

The measures are meant to strengthen past embargoes imposed by the EU in response to UN Security Council resolutions.

They are also in line with similar measures adopted by the Obama administration, which imposed penalties Wednesday against additional individuals and institutions it says are helping Iran develop its nuclear and missile programs and evade international sanctions.

The United States, Israel, and the EU fear that Iran will continue to upgrade its uranium enrichment program until it can produce a nuclear weapon.

Iran vehemently denies the charge, saying that its program is intended for peaceful purposes such as energy generation, and that it has the right to enrich uranium under the international nonproliferation treaty.

Iran’s parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani said that Tehran would retaliate against the EU for additional sanctions.

“Europeans should not think of imposing sanctions on Iran following the UN Security Council resolution,’’ the country’s official news agency quoted him as saying. “In case of imposing sanctions by the EU, Iran will consider the issue of reciprocity.’’ He did not elaborate.

The new EU sanctions will now be passed on to government technical specialists to work out the specifics of which companies and products would be targeted, and how.

This could be a tricky procedure, given the different economic interests of EU countries involved.