US Targets ‘Shadow Banking’ Network Helping Iran Evade Sanctions

A bronze seal for the Department of the Treasury is shown at the US Treasury building in Washington, US, January 20, 2023.  (Reuters)
A bronze seal for the Department of the Treasury is shown at the US Treasury building in Washington, US, January 20, 2023. (Reuters)
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US Targets ‘Shadow Banking’ Network Helping Iran Evade Sanctions

A bronze seal for the Department of the Treasury is shown at the US Treasury building in Washington, US, January 20, 2023.  (Reuters)
A bronze seal for the Department of the Treasury is shown at the US Treasury building in Washington, US, January 20, 2023. (Reuters)

The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on 39 entities, including many based in Hong Kong, that Washington said facilitate Iran's access to the global financial system, describing them as a "shadow banking" network that moves billions of dollars.

The US Treasury Department in a statement said those targeted had granted companies previously slapped with Iran-related sanctions, such as Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industry Commercial Co (PGPICC) and Triliance Petrochemical Co Ltd, access to the international financial system and helped them hide their trade with foreign customers.

The latest US move against Iran comes as efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear deal have stalled, while ties between Tehran and the West have become increasingly strained as Iranians keep up anti-government protests.

Washington has targeted Chinese companies over the export of Iran's petrochemicals as the prospects of reviving the nuclear pact have dimmed.

"Iran cultivates complex sanctions evasion networks where foreign buyers, exchange houses, and dozens of front companies cooperatively help sanctioned Iranian companies to continue to trade," said Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo.

He said the new measures showed the US commitment to enforcing sanctions and its "ability to disrupt Iran's foreign financial networks, which it uses to launder funds."

Liu Pengyu, spokesman for China's embassy in Washington said the US actions had no basis in international law and were "typical unilateral sanctions and illegal 'long-arm jurisdiction'" that were detrimental to Chinese interests.

"We deplore and reject this move," he said, adding China had "actively promoted peace talks and sought a political solution" in Ukraine, while the United States "has been fanning the flame and fueling the fight with more weaponry."

Iran's mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Thursday's move freezes any US assets of those designated and generally bars Americans from dealing with them. Those that engage in certain transactions with them also risk being hit by sanctions.

The Treasury accused companies operating out of Hong Kong - including Foraben Trading Limited, Hongkong Well International Trading Limited, and Salita Trade Limited - of transferring millions of dollars related to petrochemical sales to China.

The Treasury Department's top sanctions official, Brian Nelson, recently visited Türkiye to warn that Washington will continue to aggressively enforce its sanctions.

Among those designated on Thursday were two Türkiye-based entities, as well as Iran-based Mehr Petrochemical Company.

Brian O'Toole, a former Treasury Department official, said Thursday's action would put a dent in Iran's ability to keep moving oil and get paid for it.

"This is a pretty big deal, because this kind of thing should have an impact on what Iran is able to sell," O'Toole said.



UK and France Must End Dependency on US and China, Macron Warns

France's President Emmanuel Macron, Britain's King Charles III, Britain's Queen Camilla and Brigitte Macron stand during a ceremonial welcome at Windsor Castle, in Windsor west of London, on July 8, 2025, on the first day of a three-day state visit to Britain. LUDOVIC MARIN/Pool via REUTERS
France's President Emmanuel Macron, Britain's King Charles III, Britain's Queen Camilla and Brigitte Macron stand during a ceremonial welcome at Windsor Castle, in Windsor west of London, on July 8, 2025, on the first day of a three-day state visit to Britain. LUDOVIC MARIN/Pool via REUTERS
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UK and France Must End Dependency on US and China, Macron Warns

France's President Emmanuel Macron, Britain's King Charles III, Britain's Queen Camilla and Brigitte Macron stand during a ceremonial welcome at Windsor Castle, in Windsor west of London, on July 8, 2025, on the first day of a three-day state visit to Britain. LUDOVIC MARIN/Pool via REUTERS
France's President Emmanuel Macron, Britain's King Charles III, Britain's Queen Camilla and Brigitte Macron stand during a ceremonial welcome at Windsor Castle, in Windsor west of London, on July 8, 2025, on the first day of a three-day state visit to Britain. LUDOVIC MARIN/Pool via REUTERS

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday Britain and France must work together to counter the world's many destabilizing threats and protect Europe from "excessive dependencies" on the United States and China. 

Macron, in a rare address to both houses of the British parliament, celebrated the return of closer ties between the two countries as he became the first European leader to be invited for a British state visit since Brexit. 

Having been greeted earlier by the British royal family, Macron set out to parliament where he said the two countries needed to come together to strengthen Europe, including on defense, immigration, climate, and trade. 

"The United Kingdom and France must once again show the world that our alliance can make all the difference," he said. 

"The only way to overcome the challenges we have, the challenges of our times, will be to go together hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder." 

Listing the geopolitical threats the countries face, Macron argued they should also be wary of the "excessive dependencies of both the US and China," saying they needed to "de-risk our economies and our societies from this dual dependency." 

But he also set out the opportunities of a closer union, saying they should make it easier for students, researchers and artists to live in each other's countries, and seek to work together on artificial intelligence and protect children online. 

The speech symbolized the improvement in relations sought by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's center-left Labor Party, as part of a broader reset of ties with European allies following the rancor over Britain's departure from the European Union. 

'ENTENTE AMICALE' 

Macron, who enjoys a strong personal relationship with King Charles, was earlier greeted by the royal family, including heir-to-the-throne Prince William and his wife Princess Catherine, before they travelled in horse-drawn carriages to Windsor Castle. 

Charles used his speech at the evening's opulent state banquet to christen a new era of friendly relations, upgrading the "entente cordiale" - an alliance dating from 1904 that ended centuries of military rivalries - to an "entente amicale." 

"As we dine here in this ancient place, redolent with our shared history, allow me to propose a toast to France and to our new entente. An entente not only past and present, but for the future - and no longer just cordiale, but now amicale," he said. 

The 76-year-old monarch, who is undergoing treatment for cancer, had a noticeably red right eye. A Buckingham Palace source said he had suffered a burst blood vessel that was unrelated to any other health condition.  

Britain and France marked the three-day visit with an announcement that French nuclear energy utility EDF would invest £1.1 billion ($1.5 billion) in a nuclear power project in eastern England. 

The two also said France would lend Britain the Bayeux Tapestry, allowing the 11th-century masterpiece to return for the first time in more than 900 years, in exchange for Britain loaning France Anglo-Saxon and Viking treasures. 

The state visit comes 16 years after the late Queen Elizabeth hosted then-French president Nicolas Sarkozy. Despite tensions over post-Brexit ties and how to stop asylum seekers from crossing the Channel in small boats, Britain and France have been working closely to create a planned military force to support Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire with Russia. 

Starmer is hoping that will help persuade Macron to take a different approach to stopping people smuggling, with London wanting to try out an asylum seekers' returns deal. This would involve Britain deporting one asylum seeker to France in exchange for another with a legitimate case to be in Britain.  

A record number of asylum seekers have arrived in Britain on small boats in the first six months of this year. Starmer, whose party is trailing Nigel Farage's right-wing Reform UK party in the polls, is under pressure to find a solution. 

France has previously refused to sign such an agreement, saying Britain should negotiate an arrangement with all EU countries.