WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A large US delegation led by Treasury Secretary Stephen Mnuchin will embark on a Middle East tour next week that will see him step up pressure on Iran.
He is accompanied by senior Treasury officials as well as Jared Kushner, an adviser to President Donald Trump and his brother-in-law.
The US delegation is scheduled to include Gulf states including Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, as well as Israel and India.
In Saudi Arabia, the delegation led by the US Treasury Secretary is expected to participate in the new session of the Forum for the Future of Investment, which will be held in Riyadh from next Tuesday.
The US envoy to Iran, Brian Cook, and Avi Berkovich, an adviser to Jared Kushner, plan to join the US delegation, a Reuters official said.
Days before the US delegation's Middle East tour begins, the Treasury said its members would use this opportunity to increase pressure on hard-hit Iran and boost economic ties with US allies in the region.
Meanwhile, the US Treasury and State Departments announced a new mechanism that they said was aimed at delivering "humanitarian relief" to the Iranian people and ensuring that it was not diverted to the Iranian regime to develop its missile programs and support terrorism.
US Treasury Secretary Stephen Minuchin said the department had classified Iran as a country of concern for money laundering, adding that it deliberately avoids transparency in its economy to be able to export terrorism worldwide.
Mnuchin pointed out that the new mechanism helps international companies in their dealings with Iran in the framework of humanitarian relief, without violating the sanctions imposed on Tehran.
After announcing the U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear deal in May 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tough economic sanctions on the energy sector, the backbone of Iran's economy.