These companies, among other things, transport weapons and kamikaze drones from Iran, as reported by the Azerbaijani website haqqin.az.
After Iran handed over hundreds of tactical ballistic missiles to Russia, the shipping companies Vafa Wholesale Ltd and Sea River Service Limited Liability Company, whose headquarters are located in Russia, were sanctioned.
According to a U.S. State Department press release, these companies “have operated or are operating in the marine sector of the Russian Federation’s economy.” U.S. authorities stated that Vafa Wholesale Ltd owns ships that transported Iranian UAV-related equipment from Iran to Russia via the Caspian Sea. Specifically, the ships Vafa and Vafa-1 were also sanctioned by the USA.
Among the vessels owned by Sea River Service Limited Liability Company, restrictions were placed on “Omsky-103,” “Omsky-119,” and “Zakamsk.” According to U.S. authorities, the ship “Omsky-103” also transported ammunition from Iran to Russia via the Caspian Sea in February 2024.
Due to the imposed sanctions, all property of the aforementioned companies in the USA or under U.S. citizens’ control was frozen and must be reported to the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), according to the State Department.
Meanwhile, according to information published by OFAC on September 10, the following Russian ships were added to the sanctions list: “Boris Kustodiev,” “Composer Rachmaninoff,” “Omsky-103,” “Omsky-119,” “Port Olya-3,” “Port Olya-4,” Vafa, Vafa-1, “Zakamsk.” Additionally, the Russian shipping company “Transmorflot” and the general director of the “Olya Sea Trading Port” company, Dzhamaldin Pashayev, were sanctioned.
On the same day, September 10, the UK announced sanctions against the Russian vessels “Skif-V,” “Omsky-103,” “Musa Jalil,” “Baltic,” and “Begey.” According to the UK government website, these ships were involved in transporting military goods from Iran to Russia.
Now these ships are banned from entering British ports.
“Iran is one of Russia’s key military supporters and has delivered hundreds of drones to Russia since August 2022 for use in its aggressive war in Ukraine,” stated the UK government press release.
According to haqqin.az, Dzhamaldin Pashayev, who fell under U.S. sanctions, is a major businessman of Dagestani origin. His company, “Olya Sea Trading Port,” manages the Olya Sea Trading Port in Russia’s Astrakhan region.
The Olya Sea Trading Port is located 100 km south of Astrakhan in the Volga River delta at the 67th km of the Volga-Caspian Canal and is the largest Russian trade port in the Caspian region.
The port is part of the international transport corridor “North-South,” which runs through the Caspian Sea. Over the past two years, cargo traffic between Russia and Iran on this route has increased significantly. Western media report that ships transporting cargo between Iran and Russia across the Caspian Sea often turn off devices that allow them to be tracked or transmit incorrect coordinates.
The joint-stock company “Olya Sea Trading Port” is also engaged in cargo transportation. The company owns 40 ships, including 13 dry cargo ships and 27 technical vessels. According to the Russian press, Dzhamaldin Pashayev is registered as the owner of more than 20 companies, and his business also includes oil transportation. In 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice confiscated a Russian tanker with Iranian oil in Greek waters. It turned out that the tanker was registered to one of Dzhamaldin Pashayev’s companies, “Transmorflot.”
It is worth noting that following the USA and the UK, the EU is also preparing to introduce new sanctions against Russia’s “shadow” oil fleets.
As European Commission spokeswoman Arianna Podesta stated on Thursday, September 12, the EU is currently developing tools to prevent Russia from circumventing sanctions.
When asked whether sanctions are planned against specific companies and ships, given that Russia earns 18-19 billion euros per month from illegal oil trade, ignoring the $60 price cap and using about 600 tankers in its “shadow fleet,” she noted that the EU is currently working on new sanction mechanisms.
“Sanctions are a continuous process since Russia has constantly tried to bypass sanctions, and that’s why our sanctions packages have evolved over time to prevent such maneuvers. I know that this process is ongoing at various stages,” she said.
