Why US sanctioned Indian nationals, firms: 'Dismantling key elements of...'

The US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said it was sanctioning 50 individuals, entities, and vessels.

The United States has imposed sanctions on several individuals, entities and vessels, including Indian nationals and firms.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the move was aimed to disrupt Iran's ability to fund terrorist groups(AFP)

Apart from Indian entities, these also include a Chinese independent refinery and terminal. The sanctions have been imposed on a network moving Iranian LPG with nearly two dozen shadow fleet vessels.

In an official press release, the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said it was sanctioning 50 individuals, entities, and vessels which “facilitate Iranian oil and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sales and shipments from Iran."

The US believes that Iran funds its nuclear and missile programs, and supports militant proxies in the Middle East through the income from its oil networks, Reuters reported. However, Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

While speaking about the sanctions, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the department is "degrading Iran's cash flow by dismantling key elements" of the Iranian energy export machine.

He added that the move was aimed to disrupt Iran's ability to fund terrorist groups with billions of dollars' worth of petroleum-related exports.

The Indian firms sanctioned include Varun Pula's Bertha Shipping Inc., Iyappan Raja-owned Evie Lines Inc., and Soniya Shreshtha's India-based Vega Star Ship Management Private Limited.

The US Treasury Department also said it had accepted more than a dozen of Iran's so-called shadow fleet vessels which evade the sanctions. These include Kongm, Big Mag, and Voy, which the department said transport several million barrels of Iranian oil to Rizhao, Reuters reported.

“Under President Trump, this administration is disrupting the regime’s ability to fund terrorist groups that threaten the United States,” Bessent said.

At a cabinet meeting in the White House, President Donald Trump said the US would “like to see” Iran rebuild, but added that the country “can't have a nuclear weapon.”

The US Treasury Department said Varun Pula's Bertha Shipping Inc., based in Marshall Islands, owns and manages the Comoros-flagged PAMIR vessel, which has transported nearly four million barrels of Iranian LPG to China since July 2024.

Evie Lines Inc. owns and operates Panama-flagged SAPPHIRE GAS, responsible for transporting over a million barrels of Iranian LPG to China since April 2025.

India-based Vega Star Ship Management Private Limited owns and operates the Comoros-flagged NEPTA, which has transported Iranian LPG to Pakistan since January 2025.