Measures are part of President Donald Trump’s policy of ‘maximum pressure’ on Tehran
The US issued sanctions against Iran’s Minister of Petroleum on Thursday as Washington pursues a policy of maximum pressure against Tehran, while also looking to re-engage in nuclear deal talks.
The Treasury department said Mohsen Paknejad oversees the export of “tens of billions of dollars’ worth” of Iranian oil and “has allocated billions of dollars’ worth of oil to Iran’s armed forces for export”.
“The Iranian regime continues to use the proceeds from the nation’s vast oil resources to advance its narrow, alarming self-interests at the expense of the Iranian people,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. “Treasury will fight and disrupt any attempts by the regime to fund its destabilising activities and further its dangerous agenda.”
The punitive measures also took aim at Iran’s shadow fleet, placing sanctions on several vessels and entities linked to transporting Iranian oil to China.
“These entities provide services to the ghost fleet vessels conducting ship-to-ship transfer operations outside port limits in South-east Asia, and enabling Iran’s attempts to disguise its illicit oil trade,” said State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce.
US President Donald Trump has committed to a policy of “maximum pressure” against Iran in an effort to drive “oil exports to zero” and prevent the country from developing a nuclear weapon.
“We will continue to disrupt illicit funding to curb malign activities, limit the financial resources available to corrupt officials and use all the tools at our disposal to hold the regime accountable,” Ms Bruce said.
Thursday’s sanctions come after Mr Trump sent a letter to Iran’s leadership calling for the negotiation of a new nuclear deal. He withdrew the US in 2018 from an agreement between Iran and world powers that had placed limits on Tehran’s nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday said Mr Trump’s offer was aimed at “deceiving public opinion” and increasing pressure on Tehran.
Updated: March 13, 2025, 4:09 PM