The White House has announced its first round of sanctions targeting Iran’s “oil network.”
This came days after US President, Donald Trump re-launched his “maximum pressure” sanctions policy against Tehran.
In a statement, the US Treasury Department said that the sanctions target “entities and individuals in multiple jurisdictions” including companies in China, India and the United Arab Emirates.
It accused the “international network” of “facilitating the shipment of millions of barrels of Iranian crude oil worth hundreds of millions of dollars.”
The Treasury said in its statement that the oil was shipped “on behalf” of Iran’s Armed Forces General Staff (AFGS) and the sanctioned Iranian company, Sepehr Energy.
According to the statement, Iran generates the equivalent of billions of dollars each year via oil sales to fund its destabilizing regional activities and support of multiple regional terrorist groups, including Hamas, the Houthis, and Hezbollah.
It added that the AFGS utilizes networks of foreign-based front companies and brokers to enable these oil sales and shipments.
Secretary of the Treasury, Scott Bessent noted in the statement that the Iranian regime remains focused on leveraging its oil revenues to fund the development of its nuclear program, to produce its deadly ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles, and to support its regional terrorist proxy groups.
Bessent added that the United States is committed to aggressively targeting any attempt by Iran to secure funding for “these malign activities.”
Per the US Treasury Department, Sepehr Energy and its affiliate companies, which operate under the umbrella of the AFGS, use deceitful evasion methods such as falsification of maritime documents to obfuscate the Iranian origin of the oil that it trades and transports to overseas buyers, including the PRC.
This revenue stream generates billions of dollars for the AFGS each year, which is used to fund Iran’s military and proxies and their destabilizing activities around the world.
Sanctioned Sepehr Energy official Elyas Niroomand Toomaj (Toomaj) continues to orchestrate illicit Iranian oil shipments on behalf of Sepehr Energy and the AFGS.
The statement said that AFGS continues to directly oversee the operations of Sepehr Energy.
AFGS Brigadier General Jamshid Eshaghi (Eshaghi) serves as the AFGS Office of Budget and Financial Affairs Chief and previously served as an official of Sepehr Energy.
Eshaghi previously coordinated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on the sale of Iranian crude oil to the PRC.
Sepehr Energy is the parent company of several Iran-based companies operating in the Iranian oil sector: Sepehr Energy Hamta Pars, Sepehr Energy Jahan Nama Taban, and Sepehr Energy Paya Gostar Jahan, which share many of the same company officials.
Farshad Ghazi serves as the managing director of Sepehr Energy Hamta Pars. Farbod Mohseni Ahari serves as the chairman of Sepehr Energy Paya Gostar Jahan. Mohammad Ali Riazi Kolahdozmahaleh has served as the chairman of the board of directors for multiple Sepehr Energy companies.
Farshad Ghazi, Farbod Mohseni Ahari, Jamshid Eshaghi, and Mohammad Ali Riazi Kolahdozmahaleh are being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Sepehr Energy.
Sign Of Trump Administration’s Hard Line On Iran
US State Department Spokesperson, Tammy Bruce said that the sanctions underscore the hard line the Trump administration will take on Iran.
Bruce noted that Washington “will not tolerate Iran’s destructive and destabilising behavior and is today sanctioning an international network that channels illicit revenue to the Iranian military.”
She said that proceeds of Iranian oil sales “support terrorist and proxy groups,” including Hamas and Hezbollah.
“We will use all tools at our disposal to hold the regime accountable for its destabilizing activities and pursuit of nuclear weapons that threaten the civilised world.”
Tammy Bruce
Iran has remained under US sanctions since US President Donald Trump’s first term, when he withdrew from a deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JPCOA), in which Iran had agreed to curtail its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.
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