The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has announced the designation of Jugwinder Singh Brar, an Indian national based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as well as several entities connected to him for their roles in transporting Iranian petroleum. Brar, who manages a fleet of nearly 30 vessels, is accused of operating within Iran’s “shadow fleet,” aiding in ship-to-ship transfers of Iranian oil and using tactics to conceal the transactions.
“The Iranian regime relies on its network of unscrupulous shippers and brokers like Brar and his companies to enable its oil sales and finance its destabilizing activities,” stated Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent. “The United States remains focused on disrupting all elements of Iran’s oil exports, particularly those who seek to profit from this trade.”
This action falls under Executive Order 13902, targeting Iran’s petroleum and petrochemical sectors. It is part of the broader strategy of “maximum pressure” targeting Iran’s oil exports since the issuance of National Security Presidential Memorandum 2.
OFAC emphasizes the complexity of these oil shipments, involving networks of shell companies and document falsification to evade sanctions. The U.S. Department of State has also designated four additional companies involved in significant transactions related to Iranian oil, as well as two vessels considered blocked property.
Specific vessels used by Brar’s companies are listed as blocked property, underscoring the severity of the sanctions. These include ships flagged by nations such as Barbados and Panama, which have been used to transport and obscure Iranian petroleum products.
Brar’s operations garnered attention for their high-risk transfers in strategic waters, and his affiliation with entities in India further complicates the network. The vessels, while small, follow patterns designed to evade detection. These activities serve to benefit Iran by merging Iranian petroleum with other countries’ products and using deceptive documentation.
OFAC’s designations aim to interrupt this pipeline. Any entities holding 50% ownership by designated parties are also blocked, and U.S. sanctions prohibit transactions with such entities without proper licensing. Violating U.S. sanctions can incur civil and criminal penalties.
The enforcement of these sanctions is not meant to punish but to encourage changes in behavior, with a mechanism in place for removing individuals from the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List under certain conditions.
For more specifics on the individuals and vessels sanctioned, OFAC provides a detailed account.
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