US Treasury tightens sanctions on Iran’s oil exports
Washington has imposed another set of strict sanctions on vessels conducting “high-risk” ship-to-ship (STS) transfers of Iranian petroleum in waters off Iraq, Iran, the UAE and the Gulf of Oman.
IMAGE: Flags of the US and Iran. Getty Images
The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned UAE-based companies Prime Tankers and Glory International FZ, that collectively operate and manage a fleet of nearly 30 oil and petroleum product tanker vessels which are a part of Iran’s shadow fleet.
These vessels are used for STS transfers to load Iranian oil from other shadow fleet vessels, or to load oil or fuel that is smuggled from smaller commercial and fishing vessels, OFAC said.
“These cargoes then reach other facilitators who blend the oil or fuel with products from other countries and falsify shipping documents to conceal links to Iran, allowing these cargoes to reach the international market,” it further argued.
The US treasury department has also sanctioned Barbados-flagged GLOBAL MAHARANI, Panama-flagged NADIYA, and twenty-six more vessels and their owners that are allegedly a part of Iran’s shadow fleet.
This move has reiterated the US government’s stance on tighter sanctions against Iran as it continues with its efforts to drive the OPEC-member’s oil exports down to zero.
Besides, the US could block Iranian oil exports if it ramps up pressure on Tehran to prevent it from acquiring a nuclear weapon, US Secretary of Energy, Chris Wright, told Reuters during a visit to Abu Dhabi in the UAE.
A shadow fleet, or a ‘dark fleet’, consists of older and environmentally hazardous vessels that intentionally evade regulations. By assembling a fleet of poorly maintained vessels to circumvent sanctions meant to restrict the movement of Iranian crude oil, the country has effectively generated thousands of dollars in revenues to support regional armed groups, including the Yemen-based Houthi and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah.
By Aparupa Mazumder
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