US Sanctions Networks Involved in Russia-Iran Trade
The Treasury Department this week sanctioned 10 people and six entities in Iran and Russia involved in trading Iranian weapons and drones, along with four vessels delivering those shipments. The State Department also designated various shipping companies and vessels, including Iran Air, which the agency said is being used to move Western-origin goods to Russia.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
If your job depends on informed compliance, you need International Trade Today. Delivered every business day and available any time online, only International Trade Today helps you stay current on the increasingly complex international trade regulatory environment.
Treasury added that U.S. allies are also announcing measures to block Iran Air from operating in their territory in the future and are “pursuing further designations of Iran- and Russia-based individuals, entities, and vessels involved in the transfer of Iranian lethal aid to Russia.”
Iran Air, the country’s Tehran-based flagship airline, operates both passenger and cargo flights and has a “history” of moving goods for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and defense ministry, Treasury said. The U.S. previously sanctioned the airline for being owned by the Iranian government but is now designating it under a different sanctions authority for operating in Russia’s transportation sector.
The State Department said Iranian “proliferators” are using the airline to buy sensitive Western goods on behalf of the IRGC “through direct Europe to Iran routes. The airline has also moved sensitive Iranian drone parts on “numerous occasions,” the agency said, helping the country deliver dual-use and military items to Russia.
The U.S. also sanctioned Ruhollah Katebi, the Russian government’s point of contact in Moscow for Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics, as well as various Iranian officials. Treasury designated Dzhamaldin Emirmagomedovich Pashaev for controlling a network of shipping companies that move military exports for Russia, along with Iranian companies and other officials with ties to the country’s military or that have supplied Russian weapons makers.
The U.K. announced similar sanctions (see 2409100014).