The Trump administration has officially barred Iranian diplomats based in or visiting New York from shopping at wholesale stores, such as Costco and Sam’s Club, without prior authorization, the U.S. State Department stated on Monday.
“We will not allow the Iranian regime to allow its clerical elites to have a shopping spree in New York while the Iranian people endure poverty, crumbling infrastructure and dire shortages of water and electricity,” the department stated.
Under the new regulations, Iranian diplomats and their dependents must obtain approval from the department to shop at wholesale retailers. This includes permission to purchase luxury goods valued at over $ 1,000 and vehicles costing more than $60,000.
The only country whose diplomats were specifically targeted by the U.S. government is Iran, according to the Associated Press. Iranian diplomats are known to shop at such wholesalers to purchase items in bulk and at discount rates that aren’t available back home due to sanctions and other economic restrictions.
While the new U.S. restrictions were announced as the Iranian delegation and other world leaders gathered in New York for the 80th session of the U.N. General Assembly, they will permanently apply to any Iranian diplomats representing their country at the United Nations, AP reported.
“By preventing Iranian regime officials from exploiting diplomatic travel to the U.N. as a means to obtain goods unavailable to the Iranian public, we are sending a clear message: When the United States says it stands with the people of Iran, we mean it,” the statement from the department read.
In addition to the shopping regulations, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also restricted the Iranian delegation to areas explicitly necessary to transit to and from the U.N. headquarters to conduct official U.N. business.
“The United States will not allow the Iranian regime to use the U.N. General Assembly as an excuse to travel freely in New York to promote its terrorist agenda,” the department stated.
