Iran Blasts New Sanctions as 'Reprehensible, Ineffective'

Iran on Tuesday blasted new sanctions against the Islamic republic announced by the United States, Britain and Canada as "reprehensible and ineffective."

Foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast made the comments a day after Washington, London and Ottawa said they were leveling additional sanctions on Iran's financial sector because of a report by the U.N. atomic energy watchdog strongly suggesting Tehran was researching nuclear weapons.

"These actions show the hostility of these countries towards our people. They are reprehensible and ineffective," Mehmanparast said during his regular weekly media briefing.

He said U.S. and British sanctions previously imposed on Iran had likewise proved ineffective.

The new ones amounted to little more than "propaganda and psychological warfare," he said.

"Everybody knows our trade with Britain and the United States is at its lowest point. These past years we have decided for various reasons to reduce exchanges with those two countries to a minimum, so as to increase them with other countries," Mehmanparast said.