Turkey has announced that it has frozen the assets, bank accounts and funds of numerous Iranian individuals and entities tied to Tehran’s nuclear program, aligning its actions with renewed and broader international pressure following the reactivation of U.N. sanctions.
According to a presidential decree (No. 10438) published in the Official Gazette, the freeze covers 20 Iranian individuals and 18 organizations linked to uranium enrichment, nuclear fuel production, research institutes, shipping firms, energy companies and financial institutions. Among the targeted institutions are the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Bank Sepah and its international arm, the Isfahan Nuclear Fuel Research and Production Center, the Karaj Nuclear Research Center, and a number of technology, shipping and energy firms. The list of named individuals reportedly includes senior figures linked to uranium enrichment or nuclear research activities.
Turkey’s move updates earlier regulatory measures (from 2006, 2015, 2021) that also enforced U.N. resolutions on Iran, but this new decree is explicitly tied to snapback sanctions that were reinstated after European powers moved to reimpose U.N. restrictions. Turkish officials say the measure is procedural—intended to bring Turkey’s domestic regulations in line with the obligation to enforce new U.N. sanctions—but its timing underscores Turkey’s willingness to take a more assertive stance against Iranian nuclear ambitions.
The freeze comes on the same day that the U.S. Treasury designated 21 entities and 17 individuals involved in Iran’s military procurement networks, aiming to cut off Tehran’s access to sensitive technologies for missiles and aircraft.
