US Treasury imposes new sanctions on Iran amid talks

TEHRAN, Apr. 16 (MNA) – The US Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on Iranian oil exports and oil shipments a few days before the upcoming talks with Iran on the removal of sanctions and the nuclear program.

News ID: 2001097

EghtesadOnline: Al Jazeera reported on Wednesday citing the US Treasury Department that Washington has imposed new sanctions targeting tankers linked to Iran.

"Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is designating a China-based independent “teapot” refinery Shandong Shengxing Chemical Co., Ltd. for its role in purchasing more than a billion dollars’ worth of Iranian crude oil, including from a front company for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF). OFAC is also imposing additional sanctions on several companies and vessels responsible for facilitating Iranian oil shipments to China as part of Iran’s “shadow fleet,” the Treasury said in a statement.

“Any refinery, company, or broker that chooses to purchase Iranian oil or facilitate Iran’s oil trade places itself at serious risk,” said Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent. “The United States is committed to disrupting all actors providing support to Iran’s oil supply chain, which the regime uses to support its terrorist proxies and partners,” it also said.

"The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is issuing this update to a September 2019 advisory to assist the global shipping and maritime industry in identifying sanctions evasion related to the shipment of Iranian-origin petroleum, petroleum products, or petrochemical products and implement sanctions compliance practices to guard against such sanctions risk," the Treasury said in a statement.

"These oil shipments create significant sanctions exposure for maritime industry participants, including, but not limited to, shipping companies, vessel owners,
managers, operators, insurers, port operators, port service providers, and financial institutions," said the statement.

"Currently, Iran exports approximately 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil and 0.4 million bpd of refined petroleum products via seaborne transport, providing billions of dollars of annual revenue for the Iranian regime," added the US Treasury's statement.

The sanctions come a few days ahead of Iran and US representatives meeting for the second time in indirect talks in Oman or Italy on the Iranian nuclear issue and the lifting of oppressive sanctions on Saturday.