Sanctions News

Unregulated tankers sidestepping Western sanctions are posing a bigger risk to the Mediterranean region and Greece is undertaking more protective measures to safeguard its coast, the country's shipping minister told Reuters on Tuesday.Up to 850 oil tankers are estimated to form the so-called shadow fleet transporting oil from countries such as Iran and Venezuela as well as Russia, which has multiple restrictions on its oil exports.The ships carrying these oil cargoes pose a massive environmental challenge…

India's ship certification agency has withdrawn safety cover issued to Russian oil tankers that have been placed under U.S. sanctions, according to its website, with the vessels instead turning to a domestic provider.Major insurers and ship engine makers have already  withdrawn cover for Russia's tanker fleet, which Moscow is relying on to maintain the country's oil trade after Washington and its allies including the European Union imposed a raft of sanctions for its invasion…

The Greek navy on Wednesday extended an advisory effectively banning ship traffic off the coast of the southeastern Peloponnese that two sources said was aimed at deterring ship-to-ship transfers of Russian oil off Greece.Greece, in a rare move, over the past weeks has issued two NAVTEX notices for military exercises in the Laconian Gulf area, urging merchant and other vessels to avoid the area. One of them was issued on May 1."It was initially expiring on May 9 but was extended today…

The European Union would ban trans-shipment of Russian LNG, the use of EU ports by vessels transporting goods contributing to Russia's war effort and make EU operators more accountable for any sanctions violations, according to a text under discussion.The text seen by Reuters on Monday covers proposals that would constitute a 14th package of sanctions against Russia over its 2022 invasion of Ukraine now being debated by EU members before it enters force.According to the proposals presented to EU envoys on Friday…

The United States on Wednesday issued hundreds of fresh sanctions targeting Russia over the war in Ukraine in action that took aim at Moscow's circumvention of Western measures, including through China.The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on nearly 200 targets and the State Department designated more than 80 in one of the most wide-ranging actions against Chinese companies so far in Washington's sanctions aimed at Russia.The U.S. imposed sanctions on 20 companies based in China and Hong Kong…

U.S. sanctions are limiting tanker activity for Russia's top shipping group, Sovcomflot, the company's head said on Tuesday, as Washington tightens the screws on Moscow.The U.S. imposed sanctions on Sovcomflot on Feb. 23 as Washington seeks to reduce Russia's revenues from oil sales that it can use to support its military actions in Ukraine.Sanctions have impacted the company's operations, "limiting our geography and commercial prospects", Sovcomflot CEO Igor Tonkovidov told reporters.He added that as sanctions are a relatively new instrument to the shipping market…

The United States on Thursday imposed new Iran-related counterterrorism sanctions against Oceanlink Maritime DMCC and its vessels, citing its role in shipping commodities on behalf of the Iranian military.The United States is using financial sanctions to isolate Iran and disrupt its ability to fund its proxy groups and support Russia's war in Ukraine, the Treasury Department said. The United Arab Emirates-based Oceanlink operates a fleet of more than a dozen vessels deeply involved in shipping Iranian commodities, Treasury said.The U.S.

A cargo ship leaving Russia that made an unscheduled stop at the German port of Rostock is under investigation there for carrying cargo in possible breach of sanctions, German authorities said on Wednesday.The Atlantic Navigator II, managed by Canada-based CSAL and sailing under the Marshall Islands flag, has been detained by German customs. On board are 251 containers of birch wood, which is subject to EU sanctions against Russia, prosecutors said."Investigations are under way against the captain of the freighter on initial suspicion of a violation of the Foreign Trade and Payments Act…

India's Reliance Industries, operator of the world's biggest refining complex, will not buy Russian oil loaded on tankers operated by shipping company Sovcomflot (SCF) after recent U.S. sanctions, according to two sources familiar with the matter.The development adds to oil export problems for Russia as its oil firms may face difficulties finding ships to sell surplus oil after recent Ukrainian drone attacks on the state's refineries. Russian companies are already struggling to collect payments for oil exports due to banking restrictions.The U.S.

Russian tanker Krymsk, hit by sanctions, docked on Wednesday at the Chinese port of Dongying in eastern Shandong province, home of independent refiners, to discharge 700,000 barrels of Russian Sokol crude, LSEG and Kpler shipping data showed.This is the second Russian oil tanker, hit by sanctions, to dock at Chinese ports this month. Last week, tanker Liteyny Prospect discharged its 700,000-barrel Sokol crude cargo at the Chinese port of Huanghua near Cangzhou city in Hebei province.The Dongying port authority declined comment when contacted by Reuters.

The United States has asked Panama to ban Iranian vessels sanctioned by Washington from using its flag, U.S. State Department special envoy Abram Paley said on Wednesday.Paley said the request aims to prevent ships from being used for illegal actions such as supporting groups designated as Iranian terrorist organizations with oil sales.In January 2023, Panama's maritime authority said it had withdrawn its flag from 136 ships linked to Iran's state oil company in the last four years.

New U.S. sanctions on Moscow are more likely than previous ones to cut Indian imports of thermal coal from Russia because they specifically cite top exporters SUEK and Mechel, three major traders of Russian coal said.Russia, historically a minor exporter of the fuel to India, began boosting shipments to the south Asian country after Western sanctions against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.The latest U.S. sanctions also include Russia's payment system, financial institutions and energy production."With the new sanctions…

The United States targeted Iranian and Houthi commanders and a vessel that shipped more than $100 million in Iranian commodities to businesses in China in sanctions announced on Tuesday.Mohammad Reza Falahzadeh, deputy commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF), and Ibrahim al-Nashiri, a member of Yemen's Houthi militia, were designated under the sanctions, the Treasury Department said.The Iranian military has provided weapons and intelligence support to the Houthis that support the group's attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea…

The U.S. Treasury said on Fridayit has imposed sanctions on Russia's leading tanker group Sovcomflot FLOT.MM, as Washington seeks to reduce Russia's revenues from oil sales that it can use to support its invasion of Ukraine.The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Asset Control also designated 14 crude oil tankers vessels as property in which Sovcomflot has an interest. It issued a general license allowing the offloading of crude oil, or other cargoes, from the vessels for 45 days."Sovcomflot as a whole…

The European Commission will not add any new import bans in its next package of sanctions on Russia, EU diplomats said, as a 13th package proposal takes its final shape.The Commission and European Union member states want to quickly pass a new set of measures to mark the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24.Despite calls from some EU countries to ban more Russian exports like aluminium, the Commission will propose a package it hopes will cause minimal…

Britain and the United States on Thursday said they had imposed coordinated sanctions on four key Houthi figures for their roles in supporting or directing attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea.Attacks by the Iranian-backed Houthis have disrupted global shipping and stoked fears of global inflation. They have also deepened concern that fallout from the Israel-Hamas war could destabilize the Middle East.Those sanctioned were Houthi Defence Minister Mohamed Nasser al-Atifi…

The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on hundreds of people and entities, including in China, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, as it targets Russia's sanctions evasion, future energy capabilities, banks and its metals and mining sector.The U.S. Treasury and State departments targeted more than 250 individuals and entities in Washington's latest action attempting to crack down on Russia and its evasion of sanctions imposed by the U.S. and its allies over the war in…

India's shipping ministry will follow foreign ministry advice when deciding whether to allow a ship carrying Russian oil that has been placed under U.S. sanctions to berth at an Indian port, the country's shipping regulator said.The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on three maritime companies and three vessels owned by them for shipping Russian oil sold above a price cap imposed by the Group of Seven nations, as Washington seeks to close loopholes in the mechanism designed…

The European Commission is proposing to ban the sale of tankers for crude oil and petroleum products to Russia to prevent Moscow bypassing western sanctions on Russian oil with a shadow fleet of ships, a proposal by the Commission showed. The proposal, discussed on Friday by ambassadors of EU governments, also says that sales of tankers to a third country should include contractual clauses that ships cannot be re-sold to Russia or used to carry Russian crude oil or petroleum products that avoid western price caps - in the case of crude oil of $60 per barrel.

Russian oil tankers are not targeted in the European Commission's proposal for tightening the implementation of a price cap on the country's crude oil, EU diplomats said on Wednesday.The Financial Times reported earlier on Wednesday that Denmark will be tasked with inspecting and potentially blocking Russian oil tankers sailing through its waters under new European Union plans as a way of enforcing a $60 per barrel price cap on Moscow's crude.The FT said that Denmark would target tankers carrying Russian oil that did not have Western insurance…

The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Russia was acting in its own interests when asked about a probe by the United States into alleged violations of Western oil sanctions on Moscow.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also told a daily conference call with reporters that President Vladimir Putin would hold a meeting on the fuel and energy complex later on Tuesday.The U.S.

The U.S. House of Representatives easily passed a bill on Friday to bolster sanctions on Iranian oil in a strong bipartisan vote.The Stop Harboring Iranian Petroleum (SHIP) bill, which passed 342-69, would impose measures on foreign ports and refineries that process petroleum exported from Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions.U.S. lawmakers are debating several pieces of legislation to pressure Iran after the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel by Hamas that killed at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians.

U.S. penalties on shippers transporting Russian oil in breach of the G7's price cap could push more Russian cargoes onto vessels referred to as the ghost fleet and away from mainstream tankers, shipping sources and analysts told Reuters.The cap bans Western companies from providing maritime services for Russian seaborne oil exports sold above $60 a barrel.It was designed to keep oil flowing to markets while reducing Russia's energy earnings that it can use to finance its war on Ukraine…