US sanctions India-based petrochemical company over Iran connections

A new set of penalties have been issued by the United States against a global network of firms, including one situated in India, over trading in Iranian oil and petrochemicals. According to the US Treasury Department, these punitive actions are directed at Iranian brokers and a number of front companies in the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong and India that have facilitated money transfers and shipping of Iranian petroleum and petrochemical products.

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The US government claims that Tibalaji Petrochem Private Limited, an Indian petrochemical company, bought petrochemical materials, such as base oil and methanol, which were arranged through Triliance for shipping to China.

The United States is dedicated to severely limiting Iran's illegal oil and petrochemical sales, according to Brian E. Nelson, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. The United States will keep enforcing its sanctions against the sale of Iranian petroleum and petrochemical products as long as Iran rejects a mutual return to the full implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Nelson added.

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The US government also alleges that Triliance, a vital part of Iran's petroleum and petrochemical industries that facilitates the sale of Iranian goods to foreign customers, has bought Iranian petrochemical products worth millions of dollars from petrochemical brokers based in Iran, which were then shipped to India.

"These entities have played a critical role in concealing the origin of the Iranian shipments and enabling two sanctioned Iranian brokers,” the US treasury department said in a statement.

The US administration announced it would continue to speed up the implementation of sanctions on Iran's petroleum and petrochemical sales under powers that would be lifted under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) as Iran continues to advance its nuclear programme in violation of the JCPOA.

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The US government also stated that they would continue to be concerned about a variety of Iranian policies, including their nuclear programme, mistreatment of their own citizens, use of drones and military training in support of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine and destabilising activities in the wider region.

(With ANI inputs)