Asia
US Sanctions Eight Shipping Firms for Moving Iranian Oil to China
The US blacklisted eight shipping companies for moving Iranian crude to China, intensifying its economic pressure on Tehran, according to a US Treasury Department statement on Wednesday.The designated firms are Qi Hang Ship Management, Marinova Freight, Vast Mighty, Ocean Tranquility, Branch Saying International Trading, Confident Apex, Billion Nexus Int'l, and Nevada Spirit, all based in China or Hong Kong.Their vessels - WELL SAIL, NATSUMI, CRYSTAL, NIRETA, YEHOPE, LILY, AL SALMI, and BREEZE V - hauled hundreds of thousands to millions of barrels of Iranian oil to China and the UAE since 2022, the statement read.Separately, OFAC sanctioned two Iranian firms, Persian Gulf Marine Insurance and HormuzSafe, for running an IRGC-backed extortion scheme that forces commercial ships to buy fraudulent maritime insurance in the Strait of Hormuz, often paid in crypto.All assets of these entities under US jurisdiction are frozen, US persons and businesses are barred from dealing with them, and foreign institutions risk sanctions for continuing transactions involving the designated firms.
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