The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the designation of 12 tankers involved in transporting Russian crude oil in violation of international price caps.
The vessels, operated by UAE-based shipping firms, were identified as part of a broader effort to enforce compliance with the G7-imposed price cap on Russian oil exports.
The move follows a pattern of increasing enforcement actions against entities circumventing sanctions.
According to Finansavisen, the Trump administration introduced new sanctions targeting a major Chinese refinery and around 40 shipping companies and tankers transporting Iranian oil, in an effort to stop Iran’s primary source of revenue.
These actions reflect a broader strategy to disrupt illicit trade flows and enforce multilateral sanctions regimes.
OFAC’s latest action expands the scope of enforcement to include not only shipping operators but also trading firms based in jurisdictions such as the UAE and Hong Kong.