Sanctions & evasion
Assessment
OFAC issued a further Iran-related designation on Sept 14, together with an amended Venezuela-related general licence and FAQ, extending a run of Iran and counter-terrorism actions on Sept 4, Sept 8, Sept 9 and Sept 10, the last under Operation Economic Outcast. EU enforcement continues at sea: Operation IRINI boarded the tanker MV Sun in the Mediterranean on Aug 30 for flag verification, the sixth suspected shadow-fleet boarding in months, and the EU's 21st package of Jul 23 added 40 vessels to a list approaching 600 ships and froze the crude price cap near 44 dollars through July 2027. Circumvention through Turkey, the UAE, China, crypto and re-flagging remains robust, and a Russia-related delisting on Sept 3 shows the direction of travel is not uniform. The Graham secondary-tariff bill passed the Senate on Aug 7 but has not cleared the House, and US sanctions on ICC officials take effect on Sept 17.
Recent, assessed
- 2026-09-14OFAC posts an Iran-related designation together with an amended Venezuela-related general licence and an updated FAQ. ofac.treasury.gov
Level history
Levels set by research reviews. A level set by hand is shown at the top of the page while it is in force and is not part of this history.
| Date | Level | Status | Trend | Review |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-15 | 3 | Escalating | ▲ escalating | Weekly review |
| 2026-09-14 | 3 | Escalating | ▲ escalating | Weekly review |
| 2026-09-12 | 3 | Escalating | ▲ escalating | Weekly review |
| 2026-09-12 | 3 | Escalating | ▲ escalating | Baseline |
Latest headlines 83
Matched to this entry by keyword from the pull of 19 Sep, 11:09 UTC. Not reviewed; some may be off-topic.
- US joins Saudi Arabia, UAE, Turkey and Israel in race for Red Sea influence as it lifts Eritrea sanctions linked to Ethiopia war that killed 600,000
- Eritrea Welcomes US Sanctions Removal After Years of Measures
- Tariffs up to 500% and the "shadow fleet": Trump signed the sanctions law
- Russia Warns New U.S. Sanctions Law Would Harm Trump’s Peace Efforts
- Trump Enacts Tough New Sanctions on Russia with Bipartisan Backing in U.S. Congress
- US lifts sanctions on Eritrea’s ruling party, military
- Turkiye revokes operating licence of Iran’s Bank Mellat in Istanbul
- Trump signs Lindsey Graham sanctions bill targeting Russia into law
- Trump signs bill authorising sweeping Russia sanctions
- US lifts sanctions targeting Eritrea's ruling party and the military
- US Lifts Sanctions on Eritrea Amid Red Sea Focus
- Trump signs into law sanctions package targeting Russia's economy
- US lifts sanctions on Eritrea, with eye on Red Sea
- India Faces 100% Tariff Risk as Trump Signs Russia Sanctions Bill
- US President Trump Signs Russia Sanctions Bill, India Among Countries Facing 100% Tariff Risk