Five Dubai-based companies are among 16 firms and individuals accused by the United States of exporting items to Iran that could be used to make weapons and explosives, a news report said Saturday.

The traders are alleged to have purchased US-made "dual use" goods and transported them to Iran via the United Arab Emirates, Britain, Malaysia, Germany and Singapore, the Abu Dhabi-based The National newspaper said.

While Iran is subject to UN sanctions related primarily to material used in the manufacture of weapons of mass destruction, it is also covered by unilateral US sanctions, which prohibit the sale of most goods of US origin to the Islamic republic.

The charges against the 16 traders relate only to alleged violations of the unilateral US embargo.

Saeed al Marri, the deputy director of the Federal Customs Authority, said the UAE was committed to upholding sanctions imposed by the United Nations and not the US unilateral sanctions.

"If there is a UN resolution regarding certain goods not going to Iran, we will uphold it," he told The National.

The electronic items which the five UAE-based firms are accused of exporting to Iran could have civilian or military applications.

The US has previously accused Iran of using such items to manufacture improvised explosive devices (IEDs) that have been responsible for the deaths of US soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Trade between the United Arab Emirates and Iran amounts to 14 billion dollars a year.

Despite a dispute over three islands in the strategic waterway of Hormuz, both countries enjoy historical cultural and family links. Around 500,000 Iranians live in the UAE.