The United States Treasury Department on Wednesday announced sanctions against Iran’s newly established Persian Gulf Strait Authority, accusing Tehran of attempting to extort global maritime trade through the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
The move targets the Iranian agency responsible for collecting fees from vessels transiting the vital waterway, through which nearly 20 per cent of the world’s oil and natural gas shipments pass.
Announcing the sanctions, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Iran’s latest actions reflected mounting financial pressure on the regime.
“The Iranian military’s latest attempt to extort global maritime trade is proof that Economic Fury has left the regime desperate for cash,” Bessent said in a statement.
The Treasury also warned that individuals or entities paying the fees demanded by the authority could face sanctions themselves, arguing that such payments may amount to support for Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.
“Those engaging with the authority may be providing support to and receiving services from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and therefore could be exposed to sanctions risk,” the statement noted.
Bessent added that Washington’s sanctions campaign had significantly weakened Tehran’s financial capacity.
“Treasury has deprived the Iranian regime of revenue for its weapons programmes, terrorist proxies, and nuclear ambitions,” he said.
According to the statement, US measures have disrupted “tens of billions of dollars” in revenue that would otherwise have been accessible to Iran.
On May 20, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority published a map on X outlining what it described as its “regulatory jurisdiction,” including red demarcation lines on both sides of the Strait of Hormuz where vessels would require Iranian authorisation to pass.
Although US and Iranian forces have largely observed a ceasefire since April 8 while diplomatic efforts continue toward a negotiated settlement, tensions remain high in the Gulf region.
Iran has tightened oversight of shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, while the United States has carried out strikes on Iranian-linked targets in recent days.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baqaei, defended Tehran’s actions on Monday, insisting the country would continue managing maritime traffic through the waterway.
He argued that the fees being collected were for “navigational services” rather than tolls.
The current conflict began after the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran on February 28, prompting retaliatory missile and drone strikes by Tehran across the region.
AFP
