US Sanctions Companies for Transporting Iranian Oil

 

The new sanctions could hinder potential negotiations with Iran

by Dave DeCamp 

Posted onAugust 13, 2021CategoriesNewsTagsIran

The Biden administration imposed more Iran sanctions on Friday, targeting an individual and several companies the US accused of shipping Iranian oil. The Treasury Department alleges the shipments help fund Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force (IRGC-QF).

The sanctions targeted an Omania national, two companies based in Oman, one based in Liberia, and another that runs out of Romania. “The IRGC-QF has been using revenue from Iranian petroleum sales to fund its malign activities,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.

Last month, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Biden administration was considering new sanctions that would target Iranian oils sales to China. Friday’s sanctions could be part of that effort. The Treasury Department said the entities that were targeted worked with the IRGC-QF to “facilitate shipments of Iranian oil to foreign customers, including buyers in East Asia.”

The sanctions are another sign that the Biden administration is not very serious about trying to revive the Iran nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA. Talks have been on hold since June 20th, but Iran’s new President Ebrahim Raisi has signaled he wants to continue them. While he’s considered a hardliner, Raisi has endorsed the idea of a JCPOA revival, but he might not be as patient with the US as his predecessor, especially as Washington is implementing even more sanctions.

https://news.antiwar.com/2021/08/13/us-sanctions-companies-for-transporting-iranian-oil/