BEIRUT: A senior US official arrived in Beirut on Tuesday to follow up on financial penalty measures on Iran that are supposed to be adopted by many countries, including Lebanon.

Stuart Levey, the undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence at the US Treasury Department, intends to meet officials from the Central Bank and Finance Ministry as well as from the banking sector.

According to the United Nations Security Council, all member states should comply with the long list of economic and financial sanctions on Tehran, which refuses to cooperate in its nuclear program.

The US, Europe and other countries fear that the Iranian regime may be secretly developing a military nuclear capability, an allegation strongly denied by Tehran.

The US Embassy declined to give further details about Levey’s visit to Lebanon but stressed that a statement would be issued once the official concluded his talks in the country.

Levey’s visit is part of a tour that also includes the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

The US has released a list of Iranian banks that are blacklisted, calling on all states not to deal with them and warning at the same time that any bank which defies these guidelines will be subject to sanctions.

Washington has also listed the names of foreign banks which are suspected of dealing with Tehran.

The US Treasury Department has issued the Iranian Financial Sanctions Regulations (IFSR) to implement subsections 104(c) and 104(d) of the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (CISADA).

CISADA requires the secretary of the Treasury to issue regulations that prohibit, or impose strict conditions on the opening or maintaining of a US correspondent account or payable-through account for a foreign financial institution that the secretary of the Treasury finds knowingly engages in different activities.

Some of these activities include facilitating the efforts of the government of Iran to acquire or develop weapons of mass destruction (WMD) or delivery systems for WMD or to provide support for terrorist organizations or acts of international terrorism; facilitating the activities of a person subject to financial sanctions pursuant to United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1737, 1747, 1803, or 1929, or any other Resolution that imposes sanctions with respect to Iran; engaging in money laundering, or facilitating efforts by the central bank of Iran or any other Iranian financial institution, to carry out either of the above; or facilitating a significant transaction or transactions or providing significant financial services for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or any of its agents or affiliates whose property or interests in property are blocked pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) or a financial institution whose property or interests in property are blocked pursuant to IEEPA in connection with the government of Iran’s proliferation of WMD or support for international terrorism.

The central bank refused to comment but banking sources told The Daily Star that banks and financial institutions are obliged to comply with UN Security Council resolutions concerning Iran.

“Lebanese banks are fully complying with Security Council resolutions. This is a sensitive subject,” one banker said.

He admitted that Iran was trying to channel part of its large cash reserves to Lebanese banks but all these banks insisted on abiding by the decisions of the Security Council.

“Over the past few years, the growth in assets and customer deposits in Lebanon were normal and we did not witness any incredible rise in cash and this means that all banks did not receive any funds from Iran,” the banker said.

He added that all banks in Lebanon should comply with the directives of the Central Bank, including Bank Saderat Iran in Lebanon which was set up in 1963.

Other banks confirmed that it was nearly impossible for Iran to deposit any type of cash in the banking system.