Afət Ziyadqızı
Tajikistan’s closure of its airspace and airports to Iranian airlines has forced a Varesh Airlines aircraft operating on the Tehran-Dushanbe route to turn back while in flight. The restrictions are among a series of steps taken by neighboring countries amid threats of secondary sanctions imposed by the United States against Iran’s civil aviation sector.
Operative Information Center-OMM reports that following a statement by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, regional airports and foreign companies providing ground-handling services began refusing to accept Iranian aircraft.
Key developments and restrictions:
Closure of airspace: Regional countries including Azerbaijan, Georgia and Tajikistan have restricted flights operated by Iranian companies and ground-handling services, including refueling, ticket sales and technical maintenance, to avoid becoming targets of US sanctions.
Threat of secondary sanctions: Scott Bessent announced that foreign governments and private companies providing logistical or technical support to Iranian aircraft could face the risk of exclusion from the US financial system and dollar transactions.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, openly threatened neighboring countries cooperating with the United States in comments to state television. He said that if regional airports refused to accept Iranian aircraft, Tehran would take retaliatory measures capable of completely paralyzing the operations of those airports.
Secondary sanctions are measures through which the United States can target third-country entities that conduct certain transactions with sanctioned Iranian organizations. Such restrictions can affect access to international banking, insurance, aircraft maintenance and aviation fuel services.
