US sanctions alleged network tied to Iran energy exports, US-made chips

“The Treasury Department is degrading Iran’s cash flow by dismantling key elements of Iran’s energy export machine,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said.

“Under President Trump, this administration is disrupting the regime’s ability to fund terrorist groups that threaten the United States.”

The latest measures mark the fourth round of sanctions under the US President Donald Trump’s administration targeting China-based refineries that continue to buy Iranian oil, the Treasury said.

The Commerce Department included two subsidiaries of US-based chip distributor Arrow Electronics Inc. on its so-called entity list for allegedly facilitating purchases of American technology by Iran-linked groups. It is unusual for units of a US-listed company to appear on the blacklist.

Arrow spokesperson John Hourigan said the subsidiaries in China and Hong Kong “have been operating in full compliance with US export control regulations” and the company was discussing the matter with the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS).

In all, BIS added 26 entities and three addresses to the list of firms that US vendors cannot sell to without government approval. US suppliers should presume requests will be denied on national security grounds, the agency said.

Some of the new listings stemmed from wreckage of drones recovered by Persian Gulf states and Israel, which investigators found contained US-origin components routed through the sanctioned firms. BIS said parts recovered from Hamas drones used in the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel also traced back to some of the companies.

Part of wider campaign

The action is the latest in a series of measures aimed at constraining Iran’s weapons programs and its use of front companies abroad. Earlier this month, the Treasury Department imposed sanctions on 38 people and entities from Iran and China accused of advancing Tehran’s procurement of surface-to-air missiles and US-made helicopter parts. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington would “deny the regime weapons it would use to further its malign objectives.”

Those sanctions were also tied to the reimposition of United Nations measures on Iran under the “snapback” mechanism triggered by Britain, France and Germany in late September. The restored restrictions cover Iran’s nuclear, missile and arms programs, along with embargoes, travel bans and asset freezes.

Targeting financial networks

The US has also sought to cut off the flow of money to Iran’s armed forces and aligned groups. In September, the Treasury sanctioned four Iranian nationals and more than a dozen companies in the UAE and Hong Kong accused of moving hundreds of millions of dollars through oil sales and cryptocurrency transactions. Officials said the networks helped finance ballistic missile and drone programs, as well as groups such as Hezbollah.

The same week, the State Department revoked a sanctions waiver for Iran’s Chabahar Port that had been in place since 2018 to support reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan, warning that firms operating there could face penalties.

The vessel Delruba, part of Tehran’s state-linked IRISL fleet, has been under US Treasury sanctions since June 2020, restricting American and allied entities from providing insurance, financing, or services to it. Port records list the ship at berth 301 of the Terminal Portuário de Santa Catarina since early October.

The arrival took place on Saturday, October 4, and unloading was completed on Wednesday, October 8, according to port authorities. The cargo, valued at roughly $24.4 million, consisted of granulated urea bound for Brazil’s fertilizer industry.

Customs documentation shows the fertilizer originated from Pardis Petrochemical Company, an Iranian producer accused by US officials of financing the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, Brazilian investigative outlets reported.

The documents have not been made public, but port schedules corroborate the vessel’s presence.

The US Office of Foreign Assets Control currently lists DELRUBA as a designated vessel, though Pardis Petrochemical itself is not individually blacklisted. The company operates within Iran’s petrochemical sector, a field subject to sweeping secondary restrictions that expose foreign traders to penalties.

Iran, embroiled in disputes with the United States, is the world’s third-largest urea exporter, producing about 4.8 million tons annually—around ten percent of global supply.

If confirmed, the ship’s docking underscores a widening gap between US sanction enforcement and Brazil’s trade engagement with Tehran.

The meeting followed Eslami’s trip to Moscow last week, where Iran and Russia signed agreements on small reactors and a $25 billion project for four large nuclear power units in Hormozgan province.

The talks also covered small modular reactors and 1,250 megawatt power units, the report said.

The two sides reviewed current projects and stressed the need to speed up joint work, Iranian officials said. They also agreed Rosatom Director Alexey Likhachev would visit Iran soon to inspect progress on units two and three of the Bushehr nuclear plant.

The discussions came as a new strategic partnership treaty between Iran and Russia entered into force after approval by Russia’s lower house of parliament. The agreement covers wide cooperation in areas including nuclear energy.

The nuclear meetings followed reports this week that Iran has a €6 billion agreement with Russia for 48 Su-35 fighter jets, with deliveries expected between 2026 and 2028. Iranian lawmakers have said Moscow has already sent MiG-29 aircraft and that more advanced systems such as Su-35s and S-400 air defenses will follow.

Iranian respondents to a bulletin requesting input on their experiences seeking medicine submitted audio, video and text messages detailing daily struggles.

Several messages said the prices of both basic and specialized medicines have multiplied in recent weeks, forcing many to visit multiple pharmacies to find affordable essential drugs.

Some reported that even common cold and allergy medications are in short supply, adding that there appeared to be a near-immediate change after the sanctions' return.

Iran's Supreme National Security Council had previously ordered domestic media to limit coverage of the UN sanctions and portray their consequences as minimal.

While Iranian officials have sought to downplay the impact, the complaints from the public suggest otherwise.

Prices triple, quality falls

Some said drug prices have tripled or quadrupled while quality has declined. One consumer said the price of a five-tablet pack of antihistamines rose from 250,000 rials (about $2.16) to 1.2 million rials (about $10.37) in a month.

Others described searching multiple pharmacies only to find a lone remaining box of medicine sold at inflated prices.

“Previously, the medications we needed were available, and with approval from the Hemophilia Center and the Food and Drug Organization, we could obtain them from pharmacies. But now these drugs have become scarce, and we have to pay 20 million rials ($173) for each one,” one audio message said.

Iran’s minimum wage for 2025 is 104 million rials per month, equivalent to about $94.

Some messages indicated that people have had to ration medicines, skip meals, or make other sacrifices to afford treatment.

“My medicines were already expensive before the war and before sanctions, but now they are rationed. I have to skip meals because after every meal I need a pill, and I can’t afford more," A diabetic respondent said.

Another respondent said he had reduced his family’s food intake to pay for his wife’s medication. A homemaker reported spending over 60 million rials (about $518) on gastrointestinal drugs despite not earning an income.

Blame and frustration

Many Iranians blamed government policies for the crisis.

“The medicines were already scarce and expensive, but after the UN sanctions they became worse. Officials are not suffering; it’s the middle class and workers,” one respondent said.

Officials in Iran routinely attribute shortages to foreign pressure, while critics and dissidents cite mismanagement and corruption.