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WASHINGTON D.C. – The United States on Wednesday slapped sanctions on 37 "front companies" in Europe and five Iranians allegedly involved in Iran's shipping company, AFP reported.

The Treasury Department said 37 front companies based in Germany, Malta and Cyprus and five Iranian individuals were owned or controlled by, or were acting on behalf of, the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines and its affiliates.

The action "targets IRISL's complex network of shipping and holding companies and executives and further exposes Iran's use of its national maritime carrier to advance its illicit weapons of mass destruction program and to carry military cargoes," the department said in a statement.

The latest action identified 37 "front companies" based in the ports of Hamburg, Germany; Sliema, Malta; and Limassol, Cyprus. The five Iranians were managers or directors of the firms.

The sanctions prohibit transactions between those targeted companies and individuals and US citizens.

The Iranian shipping company initially had been designated for sanctions in 2008. To date, nearly 70 IRISL front companies and affiliates have been targeted, the department said.

"We will continue to expose the elaborate structures and tactics Iran uses to shield its shipping line from international scrutiny so that it can continue to facilitate illicit commerce," Stuart Levey, Treasury under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence.

Levey, a key architect of the Iranian sanctions, said Tehran's "pattern of obfuscation" was leading the private sector around the world to refuse business with Iran rather than risk becoming involved in its nuclear and missile programs.

The UN Security Council imposed a fourth round of sanctions in June in a bid to force Iran to comply with international calls to stop its uranium enrichment program.

The United States, the European Union, Japan, Canada and Australia imposed further unilateral sanctions.

The US, Israel and other nations suspect Iran is secretly trying to develop nuclear weapons. Iran denies the charge, saying its intentions are entirely peaceful.

The latest roll-out of US sanctions came a day after Iran's state television said the government had begun fueling the reactor core of its Russian-built nuclear power plant, bringing Iran a step closer to putting its first nuclear power plant on stream.

US and Iran have had no diplomatic ties since the Islamic revolution of 1979.