Despite Ban, Iran’s MTN Irancell Obtained Tech Equipments From Sun Microsystems, HP, Cisco

Posted on Jun 5 2012 - 5:15am by Editorial Staff

Despite the fact that it is strictly prohibited for any use of U.S. person, company, organization or agency to do any sort of business dealings to Iran, but, however, Reuters reports that Iran’s MTN Irancell, country’s second-largest mobile operator managed to obtain sophisticated U.S. computer equipment including Sun Microsystems, Hewlett-Packard, and Cisco Systems.

MTN Irancell, a joint venture between MTN Group Ltd of South Africa and an Iranian government-controlled consortium, obtained equipment from Sun Microsystems, Hewlett Packard and Cisco Systems, the documents and interviews revealed. MTN owns 49% of the joint venture but provided the initial funding.

“There’s nothing you can get in the U.S. or Dubai that you can’t get in Iran,” Chris Kilowan, who was MTN’s top executive in Iran from 2004 to 2007, said in an interview. He said MTN’s parent company, MTN Group, was directly involved in procuring U.S. parts for MTN Irancell, which launched in 2006 and is now Iran’s second-largest mobile-phone operator.

“All the procedures and processes around procurement were established by MTN,” he said. He said the company agreed to allow its Iranian partners and MTN Irancell to set up a local Iranian company with the “basic” purpose of evading sanctions on Iran.

(Image Source: Radical Graphics)

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