An Indian national and an India-based company have become the latest targets of the latest sanctions announced by the United States on Friday to curb Iran’s oil exports.
FILE PHOTO: A gas flare on an oil production platform is seen alongside an Iranian flag in the Gulf. (Reuters)The sanctions announced by the US State Department named 14 “shadow fleet vessels”, 15 entities and two individuals to block Iran’s oil exports.
The US State Department statement said it had imposed sanctions against Elevate Marine Management Pvt Ltd, an India-based firm that transported Iranian petroleum products at least three times between September and November 2025, and the firm’s director Akash Anant Shinde.
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“ELEVATE has been designated pursuant to section 3(a)(ii) of EO 13846 for knowingly engaging in a substantial transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transportation, or marketing of petroleum or petroleum products from Iran. Benedict is being identified as property in which ELEVATE has an interest,” the state statement said.
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It added that Shinde is being approved as “Chief Executive Officer, or a person performing similar functions and with similar authority of ELEVATE”.
Several other companies and ships from the United Arab Emirates, Türkiye and Kazakhstan were also targeted by the sanctions.
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said Iran uses oil revenue “to finance destabilizing activities around the world and to increase its repression inside Iran.”
The latest sanctions come amid indirect talks between Iran and the US in Oman. Speaking in Muscat after the talks, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said that “any dialogue requires refraining from threats and pressure. (Tehran) only discusses its nuclear issue… We don’t discuss anything else with the US.”
In announcing the sanctions, the State Department said in a statement, the United States will continue to act against “networks of shippers and traders involved in the transportation and acquisition of Iranian crude oil, petroleum products and petrochemical products,” which are Tehran’s primary source of income.
“The Iranian government has prioritized its destabilizing behavior over the safety and security of its own citizens, as demonstrated by the government’s massacre of peaceful protesters,” it said.
