9 Non-EU States Join EU Sanctions on Iran

Nine "EU-aspirant" and "EU-affiliated" countries have joined the Union's recent ban on Iranian gas imports and banks.

EU candidates and EEA countries - Albania, Croatia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Norway and Serbia – have now subscribed to the EU sanctions against Iran over the Iranian nuclear program, EU Observer has reported.

The publication comments that the move highlights a change in Serbia-Russia relations since Serbia is a former Russian ally and Russia has criticized the EU sanctions on Iran.

Western powers, including the EU and the US, have alleged that Iran's uranium enrichment program is geared towards producing nuclear weapons, a claim that the Iranian state has been rejecting as baseless.