In an exclusive interview with TradeWinds the tycoonsaid he has assembled teams of attorneys in the US and Greece to pursue a libelcase against United Against a Nuclear Iran (UANI), which is led by former USambassador to the United Nations Mark Wallace.

The crusade follows allegations that stem from aletter sent to Restis and former FBB chief executive ChristosKazantzis in which Dimitris Cambis, a recent target of US sanctions, solicitedwhat was billed as a “strategic alliance” between the Greek bank and theIranian oil ministry.

“These allegations are unfounded,” Restis toldTradeWinds Wednesday. “We have never had dealings with the Iranian government, ministryor any Iranian people, period. I never received this letter but even if I had it was sent a year before Cambis wasblacklisted.

“I am a high profile person, I have nowhere to hide.This situation is an example of organized crime at the highest level, perpetratedby crooks that have created a great deal of harm without thinking about theconsequences. I will have my day in court.”

Restis and Greek operator Enterprises Shipping &Trading, the jewel of the shipowner’s empire, have already been in contact withclients to assure them that its business as usual despite UANI’s attacks.

“When I discussed the situation with our clientsthey laughed, they know who we are and know nothing about [UANI], which could havecalled me before they told these lies to the world but never did,” hecontinued. “The fact they never called before making these claims is verytelling.”

Restis noted the accusations were made the same daythe National Bank of Greece announced plans to absorb the “healthy assets” ofFBB, in which he and his family held a 64% stake prior to the proposed takeover.

Market sources say UANI’s campaign also follows aconfidential filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission that set thestage for an initial public offering (IPO) of Golden Energy, a tanker venture inwhich Restis is widely believed to be a prominent sponsor.

When asked for an opinion about the advocacy group’smotives, the mogul said: “It seems like they are interested in creatingdestruction, chaos, to bring me down. It’s also very interesting two weeksprior that people that I later found to be related to UANI called and emailedme threats that could only be described as blackmail.”

Restis pointed out that many of UANI’s leaders areRepublicans and believes some may be keen on undermining the ObamaAdministration by sending government agencies that monitor compliance with USsanctions on wild goose chases.

On a personal note the tycoon expressed concernsabout the lasting impact of the name and shame crusade on his family as hebelieves the accusations have caused deep emotional wounds that cannot behealed in a courtroom.

“My mother is Jewish so this is a very sensitive subject,”Restis explained in reference to Iran and its leader’s hatred of the Jewishpeople.  “This situation hits to theheart of her soul, her beliefs. This is what makes these attacks so nasty.”