US widens Iran sanctions campaign, targeting shadow oil network
State Department and Treasury act in coordination to choke off IRGC funding streams
The United States escalated its maximum pressure campaign against Iran on Thursday, with the State Department and Treasury Department jointly sanctioning a network of entities, individuals, and vessels involved in Tehran's illicit oil trade. Washington says these moves are designed to cut off funding to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iran's broader military apparatus.
The State Department designated eight entities and identified eight vessels for their role in transporting Iranian petroleum and petrochemical products while also targeting three additional entities and one individual tied to trade in Iranian-origin petrochemicals.
The Treasury Department also moved against a Hong Kong-based network it says has facilitated the storage, transport, and sale of tens of millions of barrels of Iranian oil worth billions of dollars, revenue it says flows directly to the IRGC and Iran's Armed Forces General Staff.
Washington warned that any entity cooperating with Iran's oil trade faces exposure to US sanctions, saying it would "not hesitate to take action against anyone, anywhere" enabling the Iranian government to fund attacks on its neighbors or its own people.
As part of the broader effort, the US Rewards for Justice program announced it is offering up to $15 million for information leading to the disruption of the IRGC's financial mechanisms and those of its various branches.
The actions were taken under two executive orders, one targeting terrorist groups and their supporters and another reimposing sanctions with respect to Iran. The State Department framed the measures as part of its ongoing "Economic Fury" campaign and in line with a National Security Presidential Memorandum signed by President Donald Trump instituting maximum economic pressure on Tehran.