Japan To Freeze Assets Tied to Iran Nuclear Program

TOKYO — Japan will freeze assets belonging to 12 organizations and 13 people that are tied to Iran's nuclear development, the government's top spokesman said.

The action is based on a U.N. Security Council resolution, the Chief Cabinet Secretary, Nobutaka Machimura, told reporters in Tokyo.

Japan will freeze assets of individuals including a former deputy chief in the Iranian army, Mohammad Reza Naqdi, according to a Japanese Foreign Ministry statement. Before yesterday Japan had frozen the assets of 23 organizations and 27 individuals since May 2007 as part of the United Nations sanctions against Iran.

Iran's Islamic government has repeatedly denied that it is seeking nuclear weapons and says its program is aimed at generating electrical power. The nation has refused United Nations demands to halt its plans to enrich uranium, a potential step toward weapons production.

Iran is "hell-bent" on acquiring nuclear weapons and as a result "the military option must be kept on the table," Defense Secretary Gates said Monday during a speech to the Corps of Cadets at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York.