The United States has imposed a new round of sanctions on dozens of individuals, companies, and ships tied to Iran’s energy trade, escalating efforts to choke off one of Tehran’s most critical sources of revenue.
The U.S. Treasury Department said on Oct. 9 that it had designated more than 50 targets, mostly based in the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, and China. Officials accused them of facilitating the shipment of Iranian crude oil and sales of liquefied petroleum gas in defiance of U.S. sanctions.
“These actors have collectively enabled the export of billions of dollars’ worth of petroleum and petroleum products, providing critical revenue to the Iranian regime and its support for terrorist groups that threaten the United States,” the Treasury said….