UANI Applauds Germanischer Lloyd for Committing to Stop Certifying Iranian Vessels

   

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 18, 2012 Contact: Nathan Carleton, press@uani.com Phone: (212) 554-3296 UANI Applauds Germanischer Lloyd for Committing to Stop Certifying Iranian Vessels German Shipping Service Pledges to UANI that it will Stop Certifying IRISL and NITC Vessels New York, NY - On Monday, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) applauded the German shipping service Germanischer Lloyd (GL) for pledging to end its certification of Iranian shipping vessels, specifically those of the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) and the National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC).  Last week, UANI publicly called on GL to do precisely that.    In a June 15 letter to UANI, GL informed UANI that: "It is of the utmost importance that we maintain our good reputation. Therefore we have pursued the decision to cease rendering services to the Iranian companies mentioned in your letter." Said UANI CEO, Ambassador Mark D. Wallace: We applaud GL for deciding to stop certifying Iranian vessels. We accept GL's pledge, and we applaud GL for making this swift and responsible decision. The European shipping industry is now set to help deny the Iranian regime critical access to global trade and seaborne crude oil exports. We call on shipping certification companies in other parts of the world to follow the lead of their European counterparts, and stop certifying Iranian vessels. GL is absolutely correct in stating that working with the Iranian regime is badly damaging to a corporation's good name and reputation UANI has highlighted the shipping industry as an area where the international community can further pressure Iran. Last week, the French shipping service Bureau Veritas ended its certifying of Iranian vessels in response to UANI, a development covered by Reuters. In the past weeks, UANI also received confirmation from the Polish Register of Shipping and the Croatian Register of Shipping, respectively, that they do not provide any certification services to Iranian vessels or Iranian companies. In a March 17 Wall Street Journal Op-Ed, six UANI board members wrote that "the world must deny Iran's access to international shipping, a move that would severely affect the regime given its dependence on global trade and seaborne crude oil exports." Click here to read UANI's June 12 letter to GL. Click here to read UANI's Wall Street Journal Op-Ed, "Total Sanctions Might Stop Iran." Click here to visit UANI's Shipping Campaign page. ###                                                                          United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) is a program of the American Coalition Against Nuclear Iran, Inc., a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran should concern every American and be unacceptable to the community of nations. Since 1979 the Iranian regime, most recently under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's leadership, has demonstrated increasingly threatening behavior and rhetoric toward the US and the West. Iran continues to defy the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the United Nations in their attempts to monitor its nuclear activities. A number of Arab states have warned that Iran's development of nuclear weapons poses a threat to Middle East stability and could provoke a regional nuclear arms race. In short, the prospect of a nuclear armed Iran is a danger to world peace. United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) is a non-partisan, broad-based coalition that is united in a commitment to prevent Iran from fulfilling its ambition to become a regional super-power possessing nuclear weapons.  UANI is an issue-based coalition in which each coalition member will have its own interests as well as the collective goal of advancing an Iran free of nuclear weapons. The Objectives of United Against a Nuclear Iran Inform the public about the nature of the Iranian regime, including its desire and intent to possess nuclear weapons, as well as Iran's role as a state sponsor of global terrorism, and a major violator of human rights at home and abroad; Heighten awareness nationally and internationally about the danger that a nuclear armed Iran poses to the region and the world; Mobilize public support, utilize media outreach, and persuade our elected leaders to voice a robust and united American opposition to a nuclear Iran; Lay the groundwork for effective US policies in coordination with European and other allies; Persuade the regime in Tehran to desist from its quest for nuclear weapons, while striving not to punish the Iranian people, and; Promote efforts that focus on vigorous national and international, social, economic, political and diplomatic measures. UANI is led by an advisory board of outstanding national figures representing all sectors of our country.

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