Japan firm probed over sale of ship to Iran. A Japanese firm is being probed on suspicion of falsely declaring that it was planning to sell a ship to a company in the United Arab Emirates before selling the vessel to a company in Iran, an investigative source said Wednesday.

The Osaka-based firm was searched by police Tuesday on suspicion of violating the customs law after allegedly making a false declaration around May 2021 that it was selling a 499-ton used cargo ship to a company in the UAE, the source said.

While selling ships to Iranian companies is not prohibited in Japan, according to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, many Iranian entities are listed due to concerns that exported technology could be redirected to the development of weapons of mass destruction.

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