The warning comes as the United States negotiates with Iran over its nuclear program.
President Donald Trump on May 1 threatened sanctions on countries and people who purchase Iranian oil and petroleum.
“ALERT: All purchases of Iranian Oil, or Petrochemical products, must stop, NOW! Any Country or person who buys ANY AMOUNT of OIL or PETROCHEMICALS from Iran will be subject to, immediately, Secondary Sanctions,” he
posted on Truth Social. “They will not be allowed to do business with the United States of America in any way, shape, or form.”
The United States has enacted multiple rounds of sanctions targeting Iran’s petroleum and oil sectors, especially as countries such as China have purchased oil from Tehran.
On March 20, the Treasury Department
announced it sanctioned what is known as a teapot oil refinery and its leader for buying and refining Iranian crude oil worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The entities that are part of this network are based in China’s Shandong Province, Hong Kong, and other places.
“Teapot refinery purchases of Iranian oil provide the primary economic lifeline for the Iranian regime, the world’s leading state sponsor of terror,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in
a statement.
On April 10, the Treasury Department
said it sanctioned Jugwinder Singh Brar, an Emirati national, and his companies, accusing them of transporting Iranian petroleum.
“The Iranian regime relies on its network of unscrupulous shippers and brokers like Brar and his companies to enable its oil sales and finance its destabilizing activities,” said Bessent in a statement.
That same day, the State Department
announced it had sanctioned four entities, including one based in China, engaged in the Iranian petroleum marketplace.
On April 22, the Trump administration said it sanctioned Iranian national Seyed Asadoollah Emamjomeh and his liquified petroleum shipping network for allegedly selling the product abroad.
“This revenue funds Iran’s malign behavior, particularly the regime’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs and its support for terrorist proxies,” said the State Department.
Six days later, the Treasury Department
announced it had sanctioned three shipping companies and their vessels for transporting Iranian oil to the regime-backed Houthi terrorist group in Yemen.
The State Department
said on April 30 that it sanctioned “seven entities engaged in Iranian petroleum products and petrochemical products trade and is identifying two vessels as blocked property.”
“These companies send Iranian-origin petrochemicals and petrochemical products to third party countries and enable Iran to evade sanctions and continue to generate revenue,” according to the department.
Trump’s warning comes as the United States continues its negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program. The president has repeatedly said that Iran cannot be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.
