The US Treasury imposes sanctions on nine Iranian tankers to increase pressure on Iran, citing violence against protesters and oil financing for terrorism.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced on Friday, January 23, that it has imposed sanctions on nine additional tankers and their owners. The decision aims to increase economic pressure on Iran.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent highlighted the justification for the sanctions by drawing attention to the Iranian regime's violence against peaceful protesters. Bessent stated, 'We are increasing pressure by targeting the funding sources of the Iranian government.' The announcement emphasized the shutdown of the internet and the repression of protesters, stating that the steps are intended to support the Iranian people.
The Treasury Department argued that Iran uses its oil revenues to finance regional terrorist activities, weapons programs, and its security apparatus instead of basic public services. However, critics and human rights organizations believe that the sanctions will not provide tangible benefits to the protesters on the ground in the short term. Current estimates indicate that at least 3,100 people have lost their lives in the protests; some sources suggest that the number could be even higher.
U.S. President Donald Trump also sent strong messages to the Iranian regime at the beginning of January. On January 3, Trump warned that the U.S. could intervene if protesters were killed, and on January 13, he stated, 'Help is on the way.' Trump mentioned that planned attacks were put on hold after Iran agreed to stop executions and requested talks with the U.S. In a statement to reporters on January 22, he referred to the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, saying, 'We have a fleet heading that way, maybe we won’t have to use it.'
OFAC reported that the latest sanctions target vessels carrying hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Iranian oil and petroleum products to foreign markets. The sanctions list includes a tanker that the U.S. claims has been involved in the Iranian oil trade for six years, as well as vessels flagged from Palau, Comoros, and Panama. It was noted that shell companies are registered in various countries, including Seychelles, Marshall Islands, Liberia, Oman, India, and the United Arab Emirates.
Among the sanctioned tankers is the 46,362 dwt product tanker Longevity 7, which has been alleged to be used in the Iranian oil trade since 2020. It was reported that the vessel's flag status has been uncertain since October 2025, with its last inspection conducted in March 2025 in Russia. The U.S. stated that the vessels Sea Bird, Avon, Al Diab II, Cesaria, Eastern Hero, Aqua Spirit, Chiron 5, and Keel have been transporting LPG to Pakistan and Somalia, as well as crude oil and petrochemical products to East Asia.
The civil society organization UANI, which closely monitors anti-Iran sanctions, announced that 83 new vessels used in Iranian oil smuggling were identified by the end of 2025, bringing the total number of tracked tankers to 560. Despite this, according to UANI data, Iran's oil exports in 2025 increased by 13.5% compared to the previous year, exceeding 666 million barrels. It was noted that the majority of the exported oil went to China.
Source: SeaNews Türkiye
