US says latest Iran sanctions are toughest since 2018

31/7/2025 5:57

The U.S. Treasury

Department announced fresh sanctions on Wednesday on over 115

Iran-linked individuals, entities and vessels, in a sign the

Trump administration is doubling down on its "maximum pressure"

campaign after bombing Tehran's key nuclear sites in June.



The sanctions broadly target the shipping interests of

Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, the son of Ali Shamkhani, who is

himself an adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The

U.S. Treasury described the move as the most significant

Iran-related sanctions action since 2018, during President

Donald Trump's first administration.



According to Treasury, Shamkhani controls a vast network of

container ships and tankers through a complex web of

intermediaries that sell Iranian and Russian oil and other goods

throughout the world.



Treasury accused Shamkhani of using personal connections and

corruption in Tehran to generate tens of billions of dollars in

profits, much of which is used to prop up the Iranian regime.



Overall, the new sanctions target 15 shipping firms, 52

vessels, 12 individuals and 53 entities involved in sanctions

evasion in 17 countries, ranging from Panama to Italy to Hong

Kong.



A U.S. official said the new move would make it "much

more difficult" for Iran to sell its oil, but added that the

administration did not anticipate any sustained disruption to

global oil markets.



The official said that Iran's oil exports had already

declined to around 1.2 million barrels per day, from 1.8 million

bpd at the start of the year, after the administration imposed

several smaller rounds of sanctions targeting Iran's oil

business.



"We're still engaging further action to bring that

number down even more," the official said, noting that sanctions

pressure during Trump's first term had cut Iran oil flows to a

few hundred thousand bpd.



Iran's UN mission did not immediately respond to a

request for comment.







China is the top buyer of Iran's oil



.



The European Union sanctioned Shamkhani earlier in July,

citing his role in the Russian oil trade.



A U.S. official said that Wednesday's action would impact

both Russia and Iran, but the action was focused on Iran.



"From our perspective, given where this individual fits,

given his connection to the Supreme Leader and his father's

previous sanctions activities, given the Iran-related

authorities, it's critically important to emphasize that this is

an Iran action that is meaningful and very impactful," the

official said.



Ali Shamkhani, Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani's father, was

sanctioned by the United States in 2020.



The latest sanctions announcement came as prospects for

renewed U.S.-Iran diplomacy remained dim in the aftermath of the

U.S. bombing of Iranian nuclear sites last month.



Trump warned on Monday that he would order fresh U.S.

attacks should Tehran try to restart the nuclear sites the U.S.

had already struck.



He also told reporters Iran has been sending out "nasty

signals" and that any effort to restart its nuclear program

would be immediately quashed.



The United States held five rounds of



talks with Iran



prior to its



airstrikes in June



, which Trump said had "obliterated" a program that

Washington and its ally Israel say is aimed at developing a

nuclear bomb.



Some experts have questioned the extent of the damage.

Iran denies seeking a nuclear weapon.



A senior White House official said last week that

Washington was open to talking directly to Iran. But European

and Iranian diplomats have said there is little prospect of Iran

re-engaging with the U.S. at the negotiating table for now.