Washington: The United States on Monday imposed sanctions on more than 30 individuals and vessels linked to Iran, including the head of the national oil company, for their involvement in the sale and shipment of Iranian oil. This move comes after President Donald Trump reinstated his "maximum pressure" policy against Tehran earlier this month, echoing his approach during his first term.
"Iran continues to rely on a shadowy network of vessels, shippers, and brokers to facilitate its oil sales and fund its destabilizing activities," said Scott Bessent of the U.S. Treasury in a statement announcing the sanctions.
"The United States will use all available tools to target every aspect of Iran’s oil supply chain, and anyone who deals in Iranian oil exposes themselves to significant sanctions risk," he added.
Similar to Russia, Iran employs a network of tankers that conduct ship-to-ship transfers of oil outside territorial waters to circumvent Western sanctions. This network provides Iran—and its military—with a crucial source of revenue.
Among those targeted on Monday were Hamid Bovard, Iran’s deputy petroleum minister, and the CEO of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC). The U.S. had previously sanctioned the NIOC for supporting the foreign operations arm of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The sanctions also included oil brokers based in the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong, as well as tanker operators and managers in India and China, according to the Treasury Department.
The sanctioned vessels were accused of helping ship "tens of millions of barrels of crude oil valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars."
In addition, the U.S. State Department announced on Monday that it was designating another 16 companies and ships involved in Iran’s petroleum and petrochemical industry.
These sanctions mark the second round targeting Iran’s oil sales since Trump’s February 4 memorandum, which ordered a "campaign of maximum pressure on Iran." They follow earlier sanctions unveiled on February 6 aimed at an "international network that channels illicit revenue to the Iranian military."
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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