United States sanctions Indian citizen, entities for allegedly transporting Iranian petroleum

The United States on Thursday sanctioned an Indian citizen based in the United Arab Emirates and two India-based entities for allegedly operating vessels as part of Iran’s “shadow fleet” and shipping Iranian oil.

The US Department of Treasury alleged that Jugwinder Singh Brar owns several shipping companies that have nearly 30 vessels, which are allegedly part of the Iranian shadow fleet.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned two entities based in the UAE and two others in India that operate Brar’s vessels, saying that they transport Iranian oil on behalf of the National Iranian Oil Company and the Iranian military.

This came amid fresh efforts by the Donald Trump administration to build pressure on Iran to cut its oil exports and prevent it from getting a nuclear weapon. Tehran has said that its nuclear programme is for civil purposes.

The treasury department claimed that the vessels undertake high-risk ship-to-ship transfer of Iranian petroleum off the coasts of Iraq, Iran, the UAE and the Gulf of Oman. It also alleged that the vessels coordinate with financial officials of the Iran-backed Houthi rebels to evade sanctions.

“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...

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